How Conservative Meme to Resistance Emblem: This Remarkable Evolution of the Amphibian

The revolution may not be televised, but it could have amphibious toes and bulging eyes.

Additionally, it could include a unicorn's horn or a chicken's feathers.

As protests opposing the leadership carry on in American cities, protesters are adopting the energy of a community costume parade. They've offered dance instruction, handed out treats, and ridden unicycles, while officers watch.

Mixing humour and politics – a tactic social scientists call "tactical frivolity" – isn't novel. But it has become a hallmark of US demonstrations in this period, adopted by both left and right.

And one symbol has proven to be particularly salient – the frog. It began when recordings of an encounter between an individual in an amphibian costume and immigration enforcement agents in the city of Portland, spread online. And it has since spread to protests across the country.

"There is much going on with that small frog costume," states LM Bogad, a professor at University of California, Davis and an academic who focuses on performance art.

The Path From a Cartoon Frog to Portland

It's hard to discuss protests and frogs without talking about Pepe, a web comic frog adopted by extremist movements during a political race.

As the character first took off online, people used it to convey certain emotions. Later, its use evolved to endorse a candidate, even one notable meme endorsed by that figure himself, depicting Pepe with recognizable attire and hairstyle.

The frog was also portrayed in right-wing online communities in darker contexts, as a hate group member. Users traded "rare Pepes" and set up digital currency using its likeness. His catchphrase, "that feels good", was used a shared phrase.

Yet the character did not originate as a political symbol.

The artist behind it, the illustrator, has expressed about his unhappiness for its appropriation. His creation was meant as simply a relaxed amphibian in this artist's universe.

The frog first appeared in a series of comics in the mid-2000s – non-political and famous for a particular bathroom habit. In 'Feels Good Man', which chronicles the creator's attempt to reclaim ownership of his creation, he stated his drawing came from his experiences with companions.

Early in his career, Mr Furie experimented with sharing his art to early internet platforms, where other users began to copy, alter, and reinterpret his character. When the meme proliferated into darker parts of online spaces, the creator sought to reject the frog, including ending its life in a final panel.

But Pepe lived on.

"This demonstrates the lack of control over imagery," states the professor. "Their meaning can evolve and be reclaimed."

Previously, the popularity of this meme resulted in frogs were predominantly linked to conservative politics. This shifted recently, when a viral moment between an activist wearing a blow-up amphibian suit and an immigration officer in Portland, Oregon captured global attention.

The event came just days after a decision to deploy the National Guard to Portland, which was called "a warzone". Demonstrators began to congregate outside a facility, just outside of an ICE office.

The situation was tense and a officer used irritant at the individual, directing it into the air intake fan of the inflatable suit.

Seth Todd, Seth Todd, quipped, saying it tasted like "spicier tamales". However, the video went viral.

Mr Todd's attire was somewhat typical for the city, renowned for its eccentric vibe and activist demonstrations that revel in the absurd – outdoor exercise, retro fitness classes, and nude cycling groups. The city's unofficial motto is "Embrace the Strange."

The costume became part of in the ensuing legal battle between the administration and the city, which claimed the deployment was illegal.

Although a judge decided in October that the administration had the right to deploy troops, a minority opinion disagreed, referencing in her ruling the protesters' "known tendency for using unusual attire while voicing opposition."

"It is easy to see this decision, which adopts the description of Portland as a battlefield, as merely absurd," the dissenting judge wrote. "Yet the outcome is not merely absurd."

The action was stopped legally just a month later, and personnel withdrew from the area.

But by then, the amphibian costume had become a powerful anti-administration symbol for the left.

This symbol was spotted across the country at No Kings protests that fall. There were frogs – 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 rose in price.

Controlling the Visual Story

What connects both frogs together – lies in the relationship between the silly, innocent image and a deeper political meaning. This concept is "tactical frivolity."

This approach is based on what Mr Bogad terms a "disarming display" – usually humorous, it acts as a "disarming and charming" performance that highlights your ideas without needing directly articulating them. This is the goofy costume used, or the symbol you share.

The professor is an analyst on this topic and an experienced participant. He's written a book on the subject, and led seminars around the world.

"You could go 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 idea of such tactics is three-fold, Mr Bogad explains.

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