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

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

While protests against the leadership carry on in US cities, protesters are adopting the energy of a local block party. They've provided salsa lessons, given away treats, and performed on unicycles, while police observe.

Combining humour and political action – a tactic social scientists call "tactical frivolity" – isn't novel. Yet it has transformed into a signature characteristic of protests in the United States in this period, used by various groups.

One particular emblem has risen to become especially powerful – the frog. It started when video footage of an encounter between a protester in an inflatable frog and federal officers in Portland, Oregon, went viral. It subsequently appeared to rallies nationwide.

"A great deal at play with that small frog costume," says LM Bogad, a professor at University of California, Davis and an academic who focuses on political performance.

From Pepe to the Streets of Portland

It's hard to examine protests and frogs without talking about Pepe, a web comic frog adopted by far-right groups throughout an election cycle.

When the character first took off on the internet, people used it to convey specific feelings. Afterwards, its use evolved to endorse a political figure, including a particular image shared by that figure personally, portraying Pepe with recognizable attire and hairstyle.

Pepe was also depicted in right-wing online communities in darker contexts, as a hate group member. Online conservatives exchanged "rare Pepes" and set up cryptocurrency in his name. His catchphrase, "feels good, man", became a coded signal.

But its beginnings were not so controversial.

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 comic world.

Pepe first appeared in an online comic in the mid-2000s – non-political and notable for a particular bathroom habit. A film, which follows the creator's attempt to take back of his creation, he explained his drawing was inspired by his experiences with companions.

Early in his career, the artist tried sharing his art to early internet platforms, where the community began to copy, alter, and reinterpret his character. As Pepe spread into darker parts of the internet, the creator attempted to distance himself from the frog, including ending its life in a comic strip.

But Pepe lived on.

"It shows that creators cannot own symbols," states Prof Bogad. "They can change and shift and be reworked."

Previously, the popularity of this meme resulted in amphibian imagery became a symbol for the right. A transformation occurred on a day in October, when a viral moment between an activist dressed in an inflatable frog costume and an immigration officer in Portland spread rapidly online.

This incident occurred shortly after a decision to deploy the National Guard to the city, which was called "a warzone". Protesters began to gather in droves on a single block, just outside of an ICE office.

Tensions were high and an agent sprayed irritant at the individual, aiming directly into the opening of the costume.

The protester, the man in the costume, responded with a joke, remarking it tasted like "something milder". Yet the footage became a sensation.

Mr Todd's attire was somewhat typical for the city, famous for its quirky culture and activist demonstrations that delight in the ridiculous – public yoga, retro fitness classes, and nude cycling groups. The city's unofficial motto is "Embrace the Strange."

The costume was also referenced in subsequent court proceedings between the federal government and Portland, which contended the deployment was illegal.

Although a judge decided that month that the administration was within its rights to send personnel, a dissenting judge wrote, noting in her opinion the protesters' "propensity for wearing chicken suits while voicing their disagreement."

"Observers may be tempted the court's opinion, which accepts the government's characterization as a war zone, as simply ridiculous," she wrote. "Yet the outcome is not merely absurd."

The order was "permanently" blocked subsequently, and personnel have reportedly departed the city.

But by then, the frog was now a significant symbol of resistance for the left.

The inflatable suit was seen across the country at No Kings protests recently. There were frogs – and unicorns and axolotls and dinosaurs – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in rural communities and big international cities like Tokyo and London.

The frog costume was in high demand on online retailers, and saw its cost increase.

Shaping the Narrative

The link between the two amphibian symbols – lies in the relationship between the humorous, benign cartoon and underlying political significance. This is what "tactical frivolity."

The tactic rests on what Mr Bogad terms the "irresistible image" – often silly, it acts as a "appealing and non-threatening" display that highlights a message without obviously explaining them. This is the silly outfit you wear, or the meme you share.

The professor is both an expert in the subject and a veteran practitioner. He authored a text called 'Tactical Performance', and led seminars internationally.

"One can look back to the Middle Ages – under oppressive regimes, they use absurdity to speak the truth a little bit and still have a layer of protection."

The theory of this approach is three-fold, he says.

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