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This resistance won't be broadcast, though it may feature webbed feet and protruding eyes.

Furthermore, it may involve a unicorn's horn or the plumage of a chicken.

As demonstrations opposing the leadership continue in US cities, participants are utilizing the vibe of a community costume parade. They've provided salsa lessons, distributed treats, and ridden unicycles, as armed law enforcement look on.

Combining levity and political action – a strategy experts call "tactical frivolity" – is not new. But it has become a hallmark of American protest in the current era, adopted by all sides of the political spectrum.

And one symbol has emerged as particularly salient – the frog. It originated when recordings of a confrontation between a protester in an inflatable frog and immigration enforcement agents in Portland, Oregon, spread online. From there, it proliferated to rallies throughout the United States.

"A great deal at play with that little blow-up amphibian," states a professor, who teaches at University of California, Davis and a Guggenheim Fellow who studies creative activism.

The Path From the Pepe Meme to Portland

It's challenging to examine protests and frogs without mentioning Pepe, a web comic frog adopted by far-right groups throughout an election cycle.

When this image gained popularity on the internet, people used it to express certain emotions. Later, it was utilized to show support for a candidate, even one notable meme retweeted by the candidate himself, portraying the frog with a signature suit and hair.

Pepe was also depicted in digital spaces in darker contexts, as a hate group member. Users exchanged "rare Pepes" and set up digital currency in his name. Its famous line, "that feels good", became a shared phrase.

Yet its beginnings were not so controversial.

The artist behind it, artist Matt Furie, has expressed about his disapproval for its co-option. Pepe was supposed to be simply a relaxed amphibian in his comic world.

The frog first appeared in an online comic in the mid-2000s – apolitical and famous for a particular bathroom habit. In 'Feels Good Man', which documents Mr Furie's efforts to wrest back control of his creation, he said his drawing was inspired by his experiences with companions.

As he started out, Mr Furie experimented with sharing his art to new websites, where people online began to borrow, remix and reinvent the frog. As its popularity grew into fringe areas of the internet, the creator tried to disavow his creation, even killing him off in a comic strip.

Yet the frog persisted.

"This demonstrates that we don't control icons," explains the professor. "They can change and shift and be reclaimed."

For a long time, the popularity of Pepe meant that amphibian imagery became a symbol for the right. A transformation occurred in early October, when a confrontation between a protestor wearing a blow-up amphibian suit and a federal agent in Portland, Oregon captured global attention.

This incident occurred shortly after a directive to deploy the National Guard to the city, which was called "a warzone". Demonstrators began to gather in droves at a specific location, near an ICE office.

Emotions ran high and an agent deployed pepper spray at a protester, targeting the opening of the puffy frog costume.

The individual, the man in the costume, quipped, saying it tasted like "something milder". But the incident became a sensation.

The costume was somewhat typical for the city, known for its eccentric vibe and left-wing protests that delight in the unusual – public yoga, retro fitness classes, and unique parades. The city's unofficial motto is "Embrace the Strange."

This symbol was also referenced in a lawsuit between the federal government and Portland, which contended the deployment was unlawful.

While the court ruled in October that the president had the right to deploy troops, a minority opinion disagreed, referencing in her ruling the protesters' "known tendency for donning inflatable costumes when expressing their disagreement."

"Observers may be tempted this decision, which adopts the government's characterization as a battlefield, as simply ridiculous," Judge Susan Graber wrote. "Yet the outcome has serious implications."

The deployment was stopped legally soon after, and personnel are said to have left the city.

However, by that time, the amphibian costume had become a potent protest icon for the left.

The costume appeared in many cities at No Kings protests last autumn. There were frogs – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in rural communities and big international cities like Tokyo and London.

The frog costume was in high demand on major websites, and saw its cost increase.

Mastering the Visual Story

What connects the two amphibian symbols – lies in the dynamic between the silly, innocent image and a deeper political meaning. This is what "tactical frivolity."

The strategy is based on what Mr Bogad calls the "irresistible image" – usually humorous, it's a "appealing and non-threatening" act that highlights a cause without explicitly stating them. This is the silly outfit used, or the meme you share.

Mr Bogad is both an expert on this topic and an experienced participant. He's written a book on the subject, and led seminars internationally.

"You could go back to historical periods – under oppressive regimes, they use absurdity to express dissent indirectly and while maintaining plausible deniability."

The idea of such tactics is three-fold, Mr Bogad says.

When protesters take on a powerful opposition, a silly costume {takes control of|seizes|influences