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

It also might feature the horn of a unicorn or a chicken's feathers.

Whilst rallies against the government persist in US cities, protesters have embraced the energy of a neighborhood dress-up party. They've offered dance instruction, given away snacks, and ridden unicycles, as police watch.

Combining humour and politics – a strategy researchers call "tactical frivolity" – is not new. However, it has emerged as a hallmark of US demonstrations in recent years, adopted by various groups.

And one symbol has risen to become especially powerful – the frog. It began when a video of an encounter between an individual in a frog suit and federal officers in Portland, Oregon, went viral. And it has since spread to protests across the country.

"A great deal going on with that small inflatable frog," states an expert, a professor at University of California, Davis and an academic who focuses on performance art.

The Path From the Pepe Meme to the Streets of Portland

It's hard to discuss protests and frogs without mentioning Pepe, a web comic frog co-opted by extremist movements during a political race.

Initially, when the meme first took off on the internet, people used it to convey certain emotions. Later, it was deployed to show support for a candidate, including a particular image shared by the candidate himself, portraying Pepe with a signature suit and hair.

Images also circulated in certain internet forums in darker contexts, as a historical dictator. Users exchanged "rare Pepes" and established cryptocurrency in his name. His catchphrase, "feels good, man", was deployed an inside joke.

However its beginnings were not as a political symbol.

The artist behind it, artist Matt Furie, has stated about his disapproval for its appropriation. The character was intended as simply an apolitical figure in his comic world.

The frog debuted in a series of comics in 2005 – non-political and famous for a quirky behavior. In 'Feels Good Man', which follows the creator's attempt to take back of his work, he stated his drawing was inspired by his life with friends and roommates.

When he began, Mr Furie experimented with sharing his art to new websites, where other users 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, including ending its life in a comic strip.

Yet the frog persisted.

"It shows that creators cannot own icons," states Prof Bogad. "Their meaning can evolve and be repurposed."

Until recently, the popularity of this meme meant that amphibian imagery were largely associated with the right. This shifted on a day in October, when a confrontation between a protestor dressed in an inflatable frog costume and a federal agent in Portland, Oregon captured global attention.

The moment occurred shortly after a decision to send the National Guard to Portland, which was described as "a warzone". Activists began to assemble in large numbers on a single block, near an immigration enforcement facility.

Emotions ran high and a officer used a chemical agent at the individual, directing it into the air intake fan of the costume.

Seth Todd, the man in the costume, responded with a joke, remarking it tasted like "spicier tamales". But the incident spread everywhere.

Mr Todd's attire was somewhat typical for the city, known for its eccentric vibe and left-wing protests that revel in the absurd – public yoga, retro fitness classes, and unique parades. A local saying is "Embrace the Strange."

This symbol became part of in a lawsuit between the federal government and Portland, which contended the deployment was illegal.

Although a judge decided that month that the president was within its rights to deploy troops, a minority opinion disagreed, noting in her opinion demonstrators' "propensity for donning inflatable costumes while voicing dissent."

"Observers may be tempted the court's opinion, which adopts the government's characterization as a battlefield, as merely absurd," the dissenting judge wrote. "Yet the outcome has serious implications."

The action was "permanently" blocked soon after, and troops withdrew from the city.

But by then, the amphibian costume had transformed into a powerful anti-administration symbol for progressive movements.

The costume appeared nationwide at anti-authoritarian protests last autumn. There were frogs – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They appeared in rural communities and big international cities abroad.

This item was in high demand on major websites, and became more expensive.

Mastering the Visual Story

What brings Pepe and the protest frog – lies in the relationship between the silly, innocent image and serious intent. This is what "tactical frivolity."

The strategy is based on what Mr Bogad terms a "disarming display" – frequently absurd, it acts as a "appealing and non-threatening" act that highlights a cause without needing obviously explaining them. This is the unusual prop used, or the meme you share.

Mr Bogad is both an expert in the subject and someone who uses these tactics. He's written a text called 'Tactical Performance', and led seminars internationally.

"You could go back to the Middle Ages – under oppressive regimes, absurd humor is used to speak the truth indirectly and still have plausible deniability."

The purpose of such tactics is multi-faceted, he explains.

As protesters take on authority, a silly costume {takes control of|seizes|influences