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This protest movement may not be broadcast, but it could have amphibious toes and large eyes.

Additionally, it could include the horn of a unicorn or a chicken's feathers.

As protests opposing the administration continue in American cities, demonstrators are adopting the spirit of a local block party. They have taught salsa lessons, given away treats, and performed on unicycles, while police watch.

Blending levity and political action – an approach researchers call "tactical frivolity" – has historical precedent. However, it has emerged as a signature characteristic of protests in the United States in this period, adopted by both left and right.

A specific icon has risen to become especially powerful – the frog. It began when recordings of a confrontation between an individual in an inflatable frog and federal officers in the city of Portland, spread online. From there, it proliferated to protests throughout the United States.

"A great deal happening with that little blow-up amphibian," says LM Bogad, a professor at UC Davis and an academic who studies political performance.

The Path From Pepe to the Streets of Portland

It's challenging to talk about protests and frogs without talking about Pepe, a web comic frog co-opted by far-right groups during a political race.

When this image first took off on the internet, it was used to express specific feelings. Afterwards, it was deployed to express backing for a candidate, even one notable meme shared by the candidate himself, showing Pepe with recognizable attire and hairstyle.

Images also circulated in right-wing online communities in offensive ways, portrayed as a hate group member. Participants traded "unique frog images" and set up digital currency in his name. Its famous line, "that feels good", was deployed a coded signal.

But Pepe didn't start out this divisive.

The artist behind it, the illustrator, has expressed about his disapproval for its appropriation. His creation was meant as simply an apolitical figure in this artist's universe.

Pepe debuted in comic strips in the mid-2000s – apolitical and best known for a quirky behavior. In a documentary, which follows the creator's attempt to wrest back control of his creation, he explained the character came from his time with companions.

As he started out, Mr Furie tried sharing his art to new websites, where the community began to copy, alter, and reinterpret his character. As Pepe spread into the more extreme corners of online spaces, Mr Furie sought to reject his creation, even killing him off in a final panel.

However, its legacy continued.

"This demonstrates that we don't control symbols," explains Prof Bogad. "They can change and shift and be reclaimed."

Previously, the popularity of this meme resulted in amphibian imagery became a symbol for the right. A transformation occurred in early October, when an incident between a protestor wearing a blow-up amphibian suit and a federal agent in Portland, Oregon went viral.

The event followed an order to send the National Guard to Portland, which was called "a warzone". Demonstrators began to gather in droves at a specific location, just outside of a federal building.

Emotions ran high and a officer deployed pepper spray at the individual, aiming directly into the ventilation of the puffy frog costume.

The individual, the man in the costume, responded with a joke, saying it tasted like "something milder". But the incident went viral.

The frog suit was not too unusual for the city, famous for its unconventional spirit and left-wing protests that revel in the unusual – public yoga, retro fitness classes, and nude cycling groups. Its creed is "Keep Portland Weird."

This symbol was also referenced in a lawsuit between the administration and Portland, which argued the use of troops was illegal.

Although a judge decided in October that the president was within its rights to send personnel, one judge dissented, referencing in her ruling demonstrators' "well-known penchant for using unusual attire while voicing dissent."

"Observers may be tempted the court's opinion, which accepts the description of Portland as a battlefield, as simply ridiculous," Judge Susan Graber stated. "But today's decision is not merely absurd."

The deployment was halted by courts subsequently, and troops withdrew from the city.

Yet already, the amphibian costume was now a significant protest icon for progressive movements.

The inflatable suit appeared in many cities at No Kings protests that fall. There were frogs – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in small towns and global metropolises like Tokyo and London.

The inflatable suit was in high demand on major websites, and saw its cost increase.

Controlling the Narrative

What brings the two amphibian symbols – is the dynamic between the humorous, benign cartoon and serious intent. This is what "tactical frivolity."

This approach is based on what Mr Bogad calls the "irresistible image" – often silly, it's a "appealing and non-threatening" display that draws focus to a message without needing directly articulating them. This is the goofy costume used, or the meme circulated.

Mr Bogad is an analyst in the subject and a veteran practitioner. He authored a book on the subject, and led seminars around the world.

"One can look back to the Middle Ages – under oppressive regimes, absurd humor is used to express dissent indirectly and still have a layer of protection."

The purpose of this approach is three-fold, Mr Bogad says.

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