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This resistance won't be televised, yet it might possess webbed feet and protruding eyes.

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

As rallies against the leadership carry on in US cities, participants have embraced the spirit of a local block party. They've provided dance instruction, given away treats, and performed on unicycles, as police observe.

Combining humour and politics – a strategy experts refer to as "tactical frivolity" – isn't novel. However, it has emerged as a hallmark of American protest in the current era, embraced by all sides of the political spectrum.

A specific icon has proven to be notably significant – the frog. It originated after video footage of an encounter between a man in an amphibian costume and immigration enforcement agents in Portland, Oregon, became an internet sensation. From there, it proliferated to rallies nationwide.

"There is much going on with that small blow-up amphibian," states a professor, a professor at UC Davis and a Guggenheim Fellow who studies creative activism.

From the Pepe Meme to the Streets of Portland

It's challenging to examine demonstrations and amphibians without addressing Pepe, a cartoon character co-opted by online communities during a previous presidential campaign.

As the meme gained popularity on the internet, its purpose was to convey certain emotions. Later, it was deployed to show support for a political figure, even a particular image endorsed by the candidate personally, portraying the frog with a signature suit and hair.

The frog was also portrayed in digital spaces in more extreme scenarios, portrayed as a historical dictator. Online conservatives exchanged "unique frog images" and established cryptocurrency in his name. His catchphrase, "feels good, man", was used a shared phrase.

Yet the character did not originate this divisive.

Matt Furie, the illustrator, has been vocal about his disapproval for how the image has been used. Pepe was supposed to be simply a "chill frog-dude" in his comic world.

Pepe debuted in a series of comics in 2005 – apolitical and best known for a particular bathroom habit. A film, which follows the creator's attempt to take back of his work, he explained the character came from his life with friends and roommates.

Early in his career, Mr Furie experimented with sharing his art to the nascent social web, where the community began to borrow, remix and reinvent his character. When the meme proliferated into fringe areas of online spaces, Mr Furie attempted to distance himself from his creation, including ending its life in a final panel.

But Pepe lived on.

"It proves that creators cannot own imagery," explains the professor. "Their meaning can evolve and be reworked."

For a long time, the notoriety of this meme meant that amphibian imagery were largely associated with the right. But that changed in early October, when an incident between an activist dressed in a blow-up amphibian suit and an immigration officer in Portland, Oregon captured global attention.

The moment followed an order to send military personnel to the city, which was called "war-ravaged". Protesters began to congregate at a specific location, near an ICE office.

The situation was tense and an agent sprayed pepper spray at a protester, targeting the opening of the inflatable suit.

Seth Todd, Seth Todd, responded with a joke, saying he had tasted "spicier tamales". However, the video went viral.

Mr Todd's attire fit right in for Portland, renowned for its quirky culture and activist demonstrations that revel in the ridiculous – public yoga, 80s-style aerobics lessons, and nude cycling groups. A local saying is "Keep Portland Weird."

The costume became part of in a lawsuit between the administration and Portland, which argued the deployment was illegal.

While a judge decided in October that the president was within its rights to deploy troops, a minority opinion disagreed, noting in her opinion the protesters' "known tendency for wearing chicken suits when expressing their disagreement."

"It is easy to see the court's opinion, which adopts the description of Portland as a war zone, as simply ridiculous," the dissenting judge stated. "However, this ruling is not merely absurd."

The deployment was halted by courts just a month later, and troops are said to have left the area.

But by then, the frog was now a potent anti-administration symbol for progressive movements.

The costume was seen across the country at No Kings protests that fall. Frogs appeared – along with other creatures – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They appeared in rural communities and global metropolises abroad.

The inflatable suit was backordered on online retailers, and became more expensive.

Shaping the Visual Story

What brings both frogs together – is the interplay between the humorous, benign cartoon and underlying political significance. This concept is "tactical frivolity."

The strategy is based on what Mr Bogad calls a "disarming display" – often silly, it acts as a "disarming and charming" act that highlights a message without obviously explaining them. It's the goofy costume you wear, or the meme circulated.

Mr Bogad is an analyst on this topic and a veteran practitioner. He authored a text on the subject, and taught workshops internationally.

"You could go back to historical periods – when people are dominated, they use absurdity to express dissent indirectly and while maintaining plausible deniability."

The purpose of such tactics is three-fold, he explains.

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