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The resistance may not be televised, though it may feature amphibious toes and bulging eyes.

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

While protests against the leadership carry on in US cities, protesters are utilizing the energy of a neighborhood dress-up party. They've offered salsa lessons, given away snacks, and ridden unicycles, while armed law enforcement watch.

Blending comedy and politics – a strategy experts refer to as "tactical frivolity" – isn't novel. However, it has emerged as a defining feature of US demonstrations in this period, adopted by various groups.

One particular emblem has proven to be notably significant – the frog. It originated after a video of an encounter between a man in an inflatable frog and federal officers in the city of Portland, spread online. It subsequently appeared to rallies nationwide.

"There's a lot at play with that humble inflatable frog," states an expert, who teaches at UC Davis and an academic who focuses on political performance.

From the Pepe Meme to the Streets of Portland

It's challenging to discuss demonstrations and amphibians without addressing Pepe, a web comic frog co-opted by online communities during an election cycle.

When the character initially spread on the internet, it was used to express certain emotions. Subsequently, it was deployed to show support for a political figure, including one notable meme retweeted by the candidate himself, depicting Pepe with a signature suit and hair.

Pepe was also depicted in digital spaces in offensive ways, portrayed as a historical dictator. Online conservatives exchanged "rare Pepes" and established cryptocurrency in his name. Its famous line, "that feels good", was deployed a coded signal.

However the character did not originate as a political symbol.

Matt Furie, the illustrator, has been vocal about his unhappiness for how the image has been used. The character was intended as simply a relaxed amphibian in his series.

This character debuted in an online comic in 2005 – apolitical and famous for a particular bathroom habit. A film, which chronicles the creator's attempt to wrest back control of his creation, he explained his drawing came from his life with friends and roommates.

As he started out, the artist tried sharing his art to early internet platforms, where people online began to borrow, remix and reinvent the frog. As its popularity grew into darker parts of the internet, the creator tried to disavow the frog, even killing him off in a comic strip.

Yet the frog persisted.

"It proves the lack of control over icons," states Prof Bogad. "They transform and be reworked."

Until recently, the association of this meme resulted in frogs were largely associated with the right. This shifted in early October, when a viral moment between an activist wearing an inflatable frog costume and a federal agent in Portland went viral.

The event followed a decision to send military personnel to the city, which was described as "war-ravaged". Demonstrators began to assemble in large numbers on a single block, near a federal building.

Emotions ran high and a officer deployed pepper spray at the individual, targeting the ventilation of the inflatable suit.

Seth Todd, the man in the costume, responded with a joke, stating he had tasted "something milder". Yet the footage became a sensation.

Mr Todd's attire fit right in for the city, renowned for its unconventional spirit and left-wing protests that revel in the absurd – outdoor exercise, retro fitness classes, and nude cycling groups. A local saying is "Keep Portland Weird."

This symbol became part of in the ensuing legal battle between the federal government and the city, which claimed the deployment was illegal.

While a judge decided in October that the president was within its rights to send personnel, a dissenting judge wrote, noting in her opinion demonstrators' "propensity for using unusual attire when expressing opposition."

"It is easy to see this decision, which accepts the description of Portland as a battlefield, as simply ridiculous," Judge Susan Graber wrote. "Yet the outcome is not merely absurd."

The deployment was "permanently" blocked just a month later, and personnel have reportedly departed the city.

But by then, the amphibian costume was now a significant protest icon for progressive movements.

The costume appeared in many cities at anti-authoritarian protests last autumn. Frogs appeared – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in small towns and global metropolises abroad.

The inflatable suit was backordered on major websites, and saw its cost increase.

Mastering the Optics

What brings Pepe and the protest frog – is the interplay between the humorous, benign cartoon and a deeper political meaning. Experts call this "tactical frivolity."

This approach is based on what Mr Bogad terms a "disarming display" – often silly, it acts as a "appealing and non-threatening" performance that highlights your ideas without needing directly articulating them. It's the goofy costume used, or the meme you share.

The professor is both an expert on this topic and a veteran practitioner. He's written a text called 'Tactical Performance', and taught workshops internationally.

"One can look back to historical periods – under oppressive regimes, absurd humor is used to speak the truth indirectly and still have a layer of protection."

The idea of this approach is three-fold, he explains.

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