An emergent hero in this chaotic time is the Portland Frog. Portland has a history of being weird, so when 45/47 announced that National Guard would be deployed to Portland we should expect a certain amount of zaniness—like the naked bicycle ride to protest, scheduled for October 12th. Further, Rachel Kiley of dailydot.org notes that others are “dressing up in colorful, silly costumes.”
Enter the Portland Frog, an “unlikely hero” (Kiley). Lauded as “terrific,” “the hero we need” (Weisberger), in one video, the young man, dressed in an inflatable frog costume, stands in front of the I.C.E. and D.H.S. agents, in their full tactical gear and masks, and hip thrusts. Characterized as “ridiculous” (thenerdstash) “unusual,” “silliness” (Kiley; O’Dell) “cartoonish and fun”, “goofy” (Kiley), and “whimsical” (Zhukovsky), it doesn’t seem to possess a clear message.
Some are confused by the tactic, with responses saying, “Did he wear the inflatable costume to avoid being pepper sprayed? I’m confused.” Matt Reigle of outkick.com dismisses it entirely “Why? Hell if I know. I find life is better if you don’t spend it trying to get inside the mind of lunatics.”
This confusion stems from the perceived lunacy of wearing a frog costume to a protest. It would seem outside the rules of engagement in this scenario—what we might call, following from Lyotard, litige. We might then call this brand of protest “pagan.” This frog seems like Nietzsche & Harold’s comedian, “comedians diagnose a specific situation, and try something to see what responses they can provoke” (194). Harold’s comedian jams or improvises, interprets and experiments with the forms, norms, rules etc. they are presented with. This provides the opportunity for différends, irreconcilable differences that provoke meaning-making. And indeed, there’s a rush to explain their behavior.
Conservatives as well as other sources immediately point to the frog as “mock[ing] law enforcement” (Dover; Zhukovsky). Merriam-Webster defines mock (v.) as “1. to treat with contempt or ridicule: deride. 2. to disappoint the hopes of. 3. defy, challenge. 4a. to imitate (someone or something) closely; 4b. To imitate in sport or derision.” The second and forth definitions would seem not to apply, but I’ll come back to 4b. The first definition is to deride, which is defined by Merriam-Webster as “1. To laugh at or insult contemptuously. 2. To subject to usually bitter or contemptuous ridicule or criticism. 3. To express a lack of respect or approval of.” So we’re clearly in the category of superiority theory. Dover etc. would seem to imply that this “liberal lefty” feels superior to the “government agents” and is “sneering down his nose at them” [my words], and in so doing, he’s defying or challenging them in some way, and thus he deserves the hostile response he gets. However, others have a different definition.
Liam O’Dell of indy100.com states, “ICE officers on the ground have had to contend with a person in an inflatable frog costume taking the mick out of them.” To “take the mickey/mick out of someone” is a British expression, clearly using the slur mick referring to Irish surnames (Mc) to infer to a stereotypical Irish temper, and therefore means to take away or blunt their anger. It has come to mean “making fun of someone or copying their behavior for a laugh,” (englishclub.com), which again would seem to put us in ridicule and superiority theory. However, “Taking the mick out of someone can help them to learn how not to take themselves too seriously” (englishclub.com).
So maybe it is ridiculous, but in a good way—it’s absurd really—and that’s the point. When asked why the frog outfit they responded, “I think it’s just to show how absurd this all is” (Collins). Kiley similarly states, “Watching cops and ICE stand off against someone like this only serves to highlight the absolute disgraceful absurdity of what’s going on in Portland.”
Conservative sources maintain that 45/47’s deployment is a legitimate response to “anti-ICE rallies that have raged since June 2025, with militants throwing improvised explosives and bricks” (Dover). “The president was ordering defense secretary Pete Hegseth to ‘provide all necessary troops to protect war-ravaged Portland’ (O’Dell). This show of military force depends on its photo ops, Kristi Noem riding on a Humvee through the streets of Chicago, showing how the military is being (mis-)treated and the “violence” of the protesters. The frog gives the lie to this.
First, it shows that the protest was most likely not violent: “Of course, many other online users found the concept of wearing costumes to a violent protest rather ridiculous” (thenerdstash). If nothing else, the frog himself is not a violent protester. Kiley notes, “[T]here’s also very clearly no place for hidden weapons, and no way for the wearer to move nimbly and pose a physical threat.” Podcaster Ed Krassenstein asks, “Is this really what you guys consider to be ‘domestic terrorists?’” (Kiley; O’Dell). One prominent user notes, “By the way, this is what Trump claims is the “Antifa insurrection” that merits sending in the Texas National Guard to Portland. A protest in which the most tense stand-off involves a gyrating frog thrusting towards police. The horror!” (Adam Cochran; Kiley)
But the costume also ruins the photo op in other ways. Thenerdstash.com points up a social media conversation about the use of costumes: “’You would think a warzone would have less costumes,’ says a person on Reddit. A response added that ICE agents are just fascist thugs playing dress-up, too” (thenerdstash). Thus we see the possible return of “mock,” definition 4b. “To imitate in sport or derision.” If both sets of clothing are costumes, then who is dressed more ridiculously? It’s Perspective by Incongruity. This connection must be inferred or “gotten,” but it seems that’s been the uptake.
And the comparison is not going well for ICE. “Only in Portland can a person in a frog costume scare ICE,” commented another, alongside a video of agents moving away from the antifa frog as it walked towards them (Kiley; O’Dell). One Twitter/X user tweeted that the frog had ‘scared’ the agents “into submission” (Kiley; O’Dell), to which another responded “Look I don’t care what the real reason for these guys backing up was. Right now what millions are seeing is a bunch of armed soldiers retreating from a guy doing pelvic thrusts at them in a frog costume.” (The Alternate Historian; Kiley)
In the face of this, the honorable, highly trained and well-paid government agents decided that shooting the Portland Frog with pepper bullets and tear gassing him in his suit’s intake valve was required and the results were captured in a video that has also gone viral. This completely rational strategy, surprisingly, backfired. The Portland Frog himself commented, “Imagine pepper-spraying a fcking frog. Crazy work. Fck ICE” (Dover). Commenters note, “The amphibious protestor was trying to help up another officer who’d fallen”; “[T]he froggy individual’s hands were up in compliance, meaning there was no reason for the cop to spray them.” “The way the cop turns the compliant frog-suit person around just to spray their air hole also shows his malicious intent, despite the protestor helping another officer get up” (thenerdstash).
Instead of looking strong, “police brutality is shown in full force” (thenerdstash). “This sparked a fresh wave of condemnation of ICE, with media organisation The Tennessee Holler writing that it was ‘more evidence of which direction the violence is really going’” (O’Dell).
“Either these heavily armed men just enjoy throwing their weight around or they’re pathetic enough that they truly feared for their safety up against some person in a blow-up frog costume” (Kiley)
“The assault has been labeled as unnecessarily cruel, especially considering the fact that the individual in the costume does not appear to be behaving aggressively or threatening in any way” (Collins).
“’Such alpha males,’ added another individual ‘they just won a fight against someone in a frog costume.’ Once again, it seems ICE has embarrassed itself on video” (Collins).
Another respondent noted, “This is the clip right here that will help further define the legacy of Donald Trump and his entire administration. Pepper spraying a guy in a frog suit,” (thenerdstash)
Conservative sources tried to characterize this as a win:
“’They bring inflatables, we bring real action,’ one X user quipped, while another noted, ‘This is what happens when you play dress-up against trained officers.’ The video’s virality, with over 2 million views, highlights how protest symbols can backfire, turning into punchlines instead of rallying cries…. As one patriot put it, ‘Finally, someone’s standing up to these clowns’” (Dover).
However, with 45/47 staging political theater and trying to incite violence so that he can invoke the insurrection act and further avoid releasing the Epstein files, or face the backlash to his unpopular policies that are strangling commerce and the average citizen, perhaps the best response we can make is to be ridiculous, absurd, whimsical. So yes, follow the agents of the state playing “The Imperial March/Darth Vader’s Theme” (Washingtonpost.com). Dance the Electric Slide in front of them. Dress up in Elizabethan gowns and have a tea-party in front of the agents, dress up as a troop of military clowns and give the lie to their political theater.
The Portland Frog hasn’t given up yet. A follow-up video features the Frog claiming “they ultimately just ‘coughed a little’ and confirming that they returned to protest the following night. ‘I’ve tasted spicier. I’m Mexican, what do you expect?’ they said, before doing a little dance.” (Kiley). The Portland Frog has since been joined by others in inflatable costumes, including a chicken and a unicorn.
References
Collins, Jordan (10/6/2025). “Man in ‘frog suit’ faces cruel punishment as ICE officer allegedly turned it into a ‘gas chamber’” https://wegotthiscovered.com/politics/man-in-frog-suit-faces-cruel-punishment-as-ice-officer-allegedly-turned-it-into-a-gas-chamber/
Dover, John [clearly an alias] (10/3/2025). “Unbelievable Protest Tactic: How a Cop Pepper-Sprayed an Inflatable Antifa Frog – Video Explodes Online” https://defiantamerica.com/unbelievable-protest-tactic-how-a-cop-pepper-sprayed-an-inflatable-antifa-frog/; also https://ussanews.com/2025/10/03/unbelievable-protest-tactic-how-a-cop-pepper-sprayed-an-inflatable-antifa-frog-video-explodes-online/
Englishclub.org. “Take the mickey/mick out of someone” (accessed 10/8/2025). https://www.englishclub.com/ref/esl/Idioms/T/take_the_mickey_mick_out_of_someone_488.php
Kiley, Rachel (10/7/2025). “ICE pepper-sprayed a protester in a frog costume. Now the “Portland Frog” is a symbol of absurd resistance.” https://www.dailydot.com/viral-politics/who-is-the-portland-antifa-frog-facing-off-ice/ also on https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/ice-pepper-sprayed-protester-frog-230000372.html
O’Dell, Liam (10/3/2025) “Frog v ICE at Portland antifa protests sends social media into frenzy.” https://www.indy100.com/politics/antifa-frog-ice-protests-pepper-spray-portland-oregon
Reigle, Matt (10/4/2025). “Portland protest gets spicy when frog costume can’t block pepper spray.” https://www.outkick.com/culture/portland-antifa-frog-costume-pepper-spray
Salk, Ariel (10/3/2025) “VIDEO: Federal agents pepper-sprayed protesters outside Portland ICE facility.” https://www.koin.com/news/portland/video-federal-agents-pepper-sprayed-protesters-outside-ice-facility/
thenerdstash.com (10/4/2025). thenerdstash.com/portland-police-pepper-sprays-breathing-vent-of-protester-in-frog-suit/
Washingtonpost.com. (9/18/2025). Man plays ‘Imperial March’ behind National Guard members. https://www.washingtonpost.com/video/national/man-plays-imperial-march-behind-national-guard-members/2025/09/18/07c20bb5-93d3-466d-816b-1ca66c71a620_video.html
Weisberger, Jason. (10/8/2025) “Watch: Portland Frog dances as ICE blasts them with pepper balls.” https://www.msn.com/en-us/crime/general/watch-portland-frog-dances-as-ice-blasts-them-with-pepper-balls/ar-AA1O7krh
Zhukovsky, Novi (10/8/2025). “Portland Protesters Don Animal Costumes To Mock Trump Administration’s ‘War Zone’ Claims” https://www.nysun.com/article/portland-protesters-don-animal-costumes-to-mock-trump-administrations-war-zone-claims
