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The protest movement won't be broadcast, but it could have amphibious toes and bulging eyes.

Furthermore, it may involve a unicorn's horn or a chicken's feathers.

While rallies opposing the government persist in American cities, protesters are utilizing the energy of a neighborhood dress-up party. They've provided dance instruction, given away snacks, and performed on unicycles, as armed law enforcement watch.

Combining levity and politics – a strategy social scientists term "tactical frivolity" – has historical precedent. However, it has emerged as a defining feature of US demonstrations in this period, adopted by both left and right.

And one symbol has proven to be especially powerful – the frog. It originated after a video of a confrontation between a man in a frog suit and federal officers in Portland, Oregon, spread online. It subsequently appeared to protests throughout the United States.

"A great deal at play with that small blow-up amphibian," notes a professor, who teaches at UC Davis and a Guggenheim Fellow who studies performance art.

The Path From Pepe to Portland

It's hard to talk about demonstrations and amphibians without addressing Pepe, a web comic frog embraced by far-right groups during a political race.

When the character initially spread online, people used it to convey certain emotions. Subsequently, its use evolved to show support for a political figure, even one notable meme retweeted by that figure personally, depicting Pepe with a signature suit and hair.

Pepe was also depicted in digital spaces in more extreme scenarios, portrayed as a hate group member. Participants exchanged "rare Pepes" and set up cryptocurrency in his name. Its famous line, "feels good, man", was deployed a shared phrase.

However its beginnings were not this divisive.

The artist behind it, artist Matt Furie, has been vocal about his distaste for its co-option. His creation was meant as simply an apolitical figure in his series.

Pepe first appeared in comic strips in the mid-2000s – apolitical and famous for a particular bathroom habit. A film, which chronicles Mr Furie's efforts to wrest back control of his work, he stated his drawing came from his time with friends and roommates.

Early in his career, Mr Furie experimented with sharing his art to the nascent social web, where people online began to borrow, remix and reinvent the frog. As Pepe spread into the more extreme corners of online spaces, the creator attempted to distance himself from the frog, even killing him off in a comic strip.

Yet the frog persisted.

"It shows the lack of control over symbols," states the professor. "Their meaning can evolve and be reworked."

Until recently, the association of Pepe meant that frogs were largely associated with conservative politics. This shifted in early October, when an incident between an activist wearing an inflatable frog costume and an immigration officer in Portland went viral.

The event came just days after a decision to deploy military personnel to the city, which was described as "war-ravaged". Activists began to congregate at a specific location, just outside of a federal building.

Emotions ran high and an immigration officer sprayed a chemical agent at the individual, targeting the air intake fan of the inflatable suit.

Seth Todd, the man in the costume, responded with a joke, saying he had tasted "something milder". Yet the footage went viral.

The costume fit right in for Portland, renowned for its quirky culture and left-wing protests that revel in the absurd – public yoga, 80s-style aerobics lessons, and nude cycling groups. The city's unofficial motto is "Keep Portland Weird."

The frog became part of in subsequent court proceedings between the federal government and the city, which argued the use of troops overstepped authority.

While a judge decided that month that the president was within its rights to deploy troops, one judge dissented, noting in her opinion demonstrators' "well-known penchant for using unusual attire when expressing dissent."

"Observers may be tempted this decision, which adopts the government's characterization as a battlefield, as merely absurd," Judge Susan Graber opined. "Yet the outcome goes beyond absurdity."

The deployment was halted by courts just a month later, and personnel withdrew from the city.

However, by that time, the amphibian costume was now a significant protest icon for the left.

This symbol appeared in many cities at No Kings protests recently. There were frogs – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in major US cities. They appeared in small towns and big international cities like Tokyo and London.

The frog costume was sold out on major websites, and became more expensive.

Shaping the Narrative

The link between Pepe and the protest frog – lies in the interplay between the humorous, benign cartoon and serious intent. This is what "tactical frivolity."

This approach relies on what the professor terms a "disarming display" – often silly, it's a "appealing and non-threatening" act that draws focus to a message without obviously explaining them. It's the unusual prop used, or the meme circulated.

Mr Bogad is an analyst on this topic and a veteran practitioner. He's written a text called 'Tactical Performance', and led seminars around the world.

"One can look back to the Middle Ages – under oppressive regimes, they use absurdity to speak the truth indirectly and still have a layer of protection."

The theory of this approach is three-fold, he says.

When activists confront authority, a silly costume {takes control of|seizes|influences