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This resistance won't be televised, but it could have amphibious toes and protruding eyes.

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

While demonstrations against the government carry on in American cities, participants are adopting the vibe of a community costume parade. They have taught salsa lessons, given away treats, and performed on unicycles, while armed law enforcement observe.

Blending levity and political action – a tactic social scientists call "tactical frivolity" – is not new. But it has become a defining feature of American protest in this period, adopted by various groups.

One particular emblem has emerged as especially powerful – the frog. It began after a video of a clash between a protester in an inflatable frog and immigration enforcement agents in Portland, Oregon, became an internet sensation. And it has since spread to protests across the country.

"There is much happening with that small blow-up amphibian," says an expert, who teaches at UC Davis and a Guggenheim Fellow who specialises in performance art.

The Path From Pepe to the Streets of Portland

It's hard to discuss demonstrations and amphibians without talking about Pepe, a web comic frog embraced by extremist movements during an election cycle.

Initially, when the character initially spread on the internet, its purpose was to express specific feelings. Afterwards, its use evolved to show support for a candidate, including a particular image endorsed by that figure himself, portraying the frog with recognizable attire and hairstyle.

Images also circulated in right-wing online communities in more extreme scenarios, portrayed as a hate group member. Online conservatives traded "unique frog images" and set up digital currency using its likeness. Its famous line, "feels good, man", was deployed a shared phrase.

Yet Pepe didn't start out so controversial.

Matt Furie, artist Matt Furie, has expressed about his distaste for its co-option. Pepe was supposed to be simply a relaxed amphibian in his series.

Pepe debuted in a series of comics in 2005 – non-political and notable for a quirky behavior. In a documentary, which follows the creator's attempt to take back of his creation, he stated the character came from his life with companions.

Early in his career, the artist tried sharing his art to new websites, where other users began to borrow, remix and reinvent the frog. As Pepe spread 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 the lack of control over symbols," explains Prof Bogad. "They can change and shift and be repurposed."

For a long time, the association of Pepe meant that frogs were largely associated with conservative politics. A transformation occurred recently, when a confrontation between a protestor wearing an inflatable frog costume and a federal agent in Portland, Oregon spread rapidly online.

The event came just days after an order to deploy military personnel to Portland, which was called "a warzone". Demonstrators began to congregate outside a facility, just outside of an ICE office.

Emotions ran high and a officer deployed irritant at the individual, targeting the ventilation of the costume.

The protester, the man in the costume, responded with a joke, stating he had tasted "spicier tamales". Yet the footage became a sensation.

The costume was somewhat typical for Portland, known for its unconventional spirit and activist demonstrations that revel in the unusual – public yoga, retro fitness classes, and unique parades. The city's unofficial motto is "Keep Portland Weird."

The costume became part of in subsequent court proceedings between the federal government and the city, which contended the deployment overstepped authority.

Although a judge decided that month that the president was within its rights to deploy troops, one judge dissented, referencing in her ruling demonstrators' "well-known penchant for donning inflatable costumes while voicing their disagreement."

"It is easy to see this decision, which adopts the description of Portland as a war zone, as simply ridiculous," the dissenting judge opined. "However, this ruling goes beyond absurdity."

The deployment was "permanently" blocked subsequently, and troops are said to have left the city.

Yet already, the frog had transformed into a powerful anti-administration symbol for the left.

The costume appeared nationwide at No Kings protests last autumn. Frogs appeared – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in small towns and big international cities like Tokyo and London.

The frog costume was in high demand on major websites, and became more expensive.

Shaping the Narrative

The link between both frogs together – is the relationship between the silly, innocent image and serious intent. This concept is "tactical frivolity."

This approach relies on what Mr Bogad terms the "irresistible image" – often silly, it acts as a "appealing and non-threatening" act that highlights a cause without explicitly stating them. This is the silly outfit you wear, or the meme circulated.

The professor is both an expert in the subject and someone who uses these tactics. He authored a text on the subject, and led seminars around the world.

"One can look back to historical periods – when people are dominated, they use absurdity to speak the truth indirectly and while maintaining plausible deniability."

The purpose of such tactics is three-fold, Mr Bogad says.

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