The rise of the frog resistance

People in inflatable animal costumes are making a mockery of Trump’s lies and the cosplaying Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

(KOIN News Portland)

By Shalise Manza Young

The humble frog might save us all.

As Doddering Donnie drones on about the war zone that is Portland, Ore.—at this point I’m convinced someone is showing him either AI videos or videos of another city entirely—a growing group of people in inflatable animal costumes is making a mockery of Trump’s lies and the cosplaying goons at the city’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility.

It appears to have started with Seth Todd, who said recently he’s been protesting since June because he finds the Trump regime’s treatment of people “unacceptable” and has been wearing the (truly adorable) frog costume as a way to show that the Republican talking point of Portlanders as violent terrorists is “ridiculous.”

As more federal agents have arrived in the city, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the number of pillowy protesters is increasing. There are more frogs plus unicorns, dinosaurs, a raccoon, giraffe, and shark, and some plush costumes as well.

That includes the now-famous chicken hanging out on the sidewalk as Noem surveyed the fiery hellscape placid neighborhood with ICE agents atop the agency’s building. Thankfully for the chicken, proud puppy- and goat-killer Noem wasn’t armed.

Portlanders also held an “emergency” naked bike ride as another way to show their disapproval with the attempted federal law enforcement takeover of their city, which is certainly a unique—and potentially uncomfortable—way to demonstrate.

It might seem silly, but the whimsical approach is working. Not only is the inflatable protesting menagerie spreading to other cities where ICE is brutalizing residents seemingly for fun, it’s just the kind of thing that could humiliate the faux tough guys both hiding behind their masks and in the White House.

Remember in 2024, when Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz suddenly became a national figure because he kept calling Trump, J.D. Vance, et al “weird”? It was a simple, accurate, and very effective way of describing the MAGA set, and they hated it.

As an aside, I will never forgive whichever overpaid campaign adviser advised Walz to stop doing the first thing in years a Democrat had hit upon that was actually breaking through. Everyone who wasn’t blindly obedient agrees that wanting the government to ostensibly be in exam rooms with pregnant people, obsessing over the genitals of a tiny minority of folk just trying to live their best lives, attacking “childless cat ladies,” and banning books that—gasp!—center Black or LGBTQ characters is undeniably weird.

Basically, mocking works. We shouldn’t mock children because they often don’t know better, but adults whose entire personalities are centered around hating and harming marginalized communities? They deserve all of our scorn.

The costumes also have a more practical use: safety for the wearers and potentially a public service for the rest of us.

For as wanton as many of these agents of the state have become, what would it look like to see video of some of them beating people in inflatable costumes? It would only underscore how out of control they are and further bolster public sentiment to get ICE off our streets.

There’s video of a Homeland Security agent shooting pepper spray into the air valve of Todd’s costume this month as he tried to help a fellow demonstrator who had been shoved to the ground. You do not look like the good guy when you’re breaking up a dance party and running behind someone wearing a child-like blow-up frog outfit to force a chemical irritant into it.

One other bonus is that these fascism-fighting frogs are taking back the amphibian from the far right, which adopted the animated “Pepe the Frog” years ago and quickly used him in so many racist and anti-Semitic memes that the Anti-Defamation League designated Pepe a hate symbol in 2016.

It’s a safe bet we’ll see lots of puffy protesters at “No Kings” events around the country on Saturday, but if you don’t have a frog yet, you could be out of luck: On Amazon, there are multiple listings for the one with black spots and blue kerchief that Todd wears, and none will arrive in time.

And if the costumes alone haven’t raised the ire of Trump, seeing one of his sworn enemies giving the Portland protests a boost can only help the frogs’ desire to mock the morons.

Stephen Colbert’s “Late Show” opened on Monday with a surprise: Kermit the Frog debuting a new version of his classic “Rainbow Connection.”

Strumming his banjo, Kermit sang:

You can spray us with pepper,

but we won’t surrender,

we’ll respond with a naked bike ride.

So march through our city,

we’ll stand up to fascists,

the chicken, the T-rex, and me”

We have found the leader of the resistance, and apparently he’s a green felted Muppet.

Shalise Manza Young is an award-winning opinion writer focusing on the intersections of race, gender and culture. She has written for Yahoo Sports, the Boston Globe and Providence Journal and lives in Boston with her family, which includes the fabulous Coco. Find her on Bluesky @shalisemyoung.

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