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This revolution isn't televised, though it may feature webbed feet and bulging eyes.

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

As rallies opposing the leadership carry on in US cities, demonstrators are adopting the spirit of a community costume parade. They've provided dance instruction, given away snacks, and performed on unicycles, while officers observe.

Blending levity and politics – a tactic experts call "tactical frivolity" – isn't novel. But it has become a signature characteristic of US demonstrations in the current era, embraced by both left and right.

One particular emblem has risen to become particularly salient – the frog. It began after video footage of an encounter between a protester in an amphibian costume and ICE agents in the city of Portland, became an internet sensation. And it has since spread to demonstrations throughout the United States.

"A great deal at play with that small inflatable frog," says an expert, a professor at UC Davis and an academic who focuses on political performance.

From the Pepe Meme to Portland

It is difficult to talk about demonstrations and amphibians without mentioning Pepe, an illustrated figure co-opted by online communities during a political race.

Initially, when this image first took off on the internet, people used it to convey certain emotions. Subsequently, it was deployed to show support for a political figure, even one notable meme endorsed by the candidate himself, showing the frog with recognizable attire and hairstyle.

The frog was also portrayed in right-wing online communities in more extreme scenarios, portrayed as a historical dictator. Users exchanged "rare Pepes" and established cryptocurrency in his name. Its famous line, "that feels good", was deployed a shared phrase.

However the character did not originate this divisive.

The artist behind it, artist Matt Furie, has stated about his disapproval for how the image has been used. His creation was meant as simply an apolitical figure in his comic world.

Pepe first appeared in comic strips in 2005 – apolitical and best known for a quirky behavior. A film, which chronicles Mr Furie's efforts to wrest back control of his work, he stated the character came from his time with companions.

When he began, Mr Furie experimented with uploading his work to the nascent social web, where other users began to borrow, remix and reinvent his character. When the meme proliferated into fringe areas of online spaces, the creator sought to reject the frog, including ending its life in a final panel.

However, its legacy continued.

"It proves that creators cannot own icons," states the professor. "They can change and shift and be reclaimed."

Until recently, the association of Pepe resulted in amphibian imagery were predominantly linked to the right. A transformation occurred on a day in October, when a confrontation between an activist dressed in a blow-up amphibian suit and a federal agent in Portland spread rapidly online.

The moment occurred shortly after an order to deploy military personnel to Portland, which was called "a warzone". Activists began to assemble in large numbers on a single block, near a federal building.

Tensions were high and an agent used a chemical agent at the individual, targeting the ventilation of the puffy frog costume.

The individual, the man in the costume, responded with a joke, saying he had tasted "spicier tamales". Yet the footage went viral.

The costume fit right in for the city, famous for its quirky culture and activist demonstrations that embrace the absurd – public yoga, 80s-style aerobics lessons, and unique parades. A local saying is "Embrace the Strange."

The frog was also referenced in subsequent court proceedings between the administration and Portland, which argued the deployment overstepped authority.

While the court ruled that month that the administration had the right to send personnel, one judge dissented, referencing in her ruling the protesters' "known tendency for donning inflatable costumes while voicing opposition."

"Observers may be tempted the majority's ruling, which accepts the government's characterization as a battlefield, as simply ridiculous," she stated. "But today's decision goes beyond absurdity."

The deployment was stopped legally subsequently, and personnel have reportedly departed the area.

Yet already, the frog was now a significant protest icon for the left.

This symbol appeared in many cities at anti-authoritarian protests last autumn. Frogs appeared – along with other creatures – in San Diego and Atlanta and Boston. They were in rural communities and global metropolises abroad.

The inflatable suit was sold out on major websites, and rose in price.

Mastering the Optics

What connects Pepe and the protest frog – is the dynamic between the humorous, benign cartoon and underlying political significance. This is what "tactical frivolity."

This approach rests on what Mr Bogad terms a "disarming display" – often silly, it acts as a "disarming and charming" performance that draws focus to your ideas without directly articulating them. This is the silly outfit used, or the symbol you share.

The professor is both an expert in the subject and a veteran practitioner. He's written a text called 'Tactical Performance', and led seminars around the world.

"One can look back to historical periods – under oppressive regimes, they use absurdity to express dissent indirectly and still have a layer of protection."

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

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