Why are ‘No Kings’ protesters turning up in frog, chicken, rooster, T. rex costumes? Explaining the trend

Several ‘No Kings’ demonstrators protesting against Donald Trump across the US turned up in bizarre animal costumes over the weekends. Protesters dressed as a unicorn, a rooster and chickens were spotted in Washington. Demonstrators in shark costumes were seen in Portland, Oregon, and a lobster wearing a sign declaring “No shellfish kings” was spotted in Boston.

Various protesters across the United States were seen in inflatable costumes, including pandas, hot dogs, Santa Clauses and T. Rex dinosaurs. Massive crowds of demonstrators gathered across the country as participants in the ‘No Kings’ protests on Saturday, October 19.

These animal costumes emerged as an image of the protests against the Trump administration this year, with several cities pushing against the US President’s deportation crackdown and domestic military deployments. In part, demonstrators are wearing these costumes as a rebuke to Republicans portraying the events as “hate America” rallies, as well as the Trump administration’s claims that blue cities like Chicago and Portland are overwhelmed with crime.

“The silliness is the point,” said Mike Nellis, a Democratic strategist, according to the Washington Post. “All these MAGA guys are out there going, ‘These cities are lawless, they’re dangerous.’ … It’s like you’re matching the absurdity of it.”

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The message is being echoed by certain elected officials too. Sen. Cory Booker (D-New Jersey) shared a clip produced by The Daily Show, in which Trump’s claims of lawlessness in Portland were placed alongside scenes of protesters dancing in absurd costumes. “Funny but true,” Booker wrote.

Meanwhile, in a speech on Saturday, Portland City Councillor Sameer Kanal said that “we have chickens and frogs defending democracy.”

The White House, however, has dismissed the trend. “It’s impressive how these ‘protesters’ constantly find ways to make themselves look even dumber,” spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement.

Brooks Brown, a streamer based in Portland, co-founded ‘Operation Inflation,’ which seeks donations to provide free inflatable costumes to anti-ICE protesters. “It cuts across any narrative: You can’t say, ‘Oh look that’s antifa, the terrorist organization,’” Brown said. He added that the costumes help keep demonstrations calm and help discourage angry rhetoric: “When you have the inflatables, everyone starts dancing, and even the people who are very serious, they continue what they’re doing, they’re disciplined … but they’re not angry. There’s not an angry vibe behind them.”

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The costume trend emerged most prominently in Portland earlier this year. The most popular costumes have varied over the time. Frogs were initially popular, followed by wiener dogs. Giraffe costumes also emerged as a favorite.

“People see that and they are infuriated and they want to support that situation,” Brown said. “They want to let people in power know: That’s me, too. I stand with wiener dog, I stand with giraffe, I stand with frog army.”

Several political strategists believe that the costumes are a great way to protest the Trump administration. Terry Sullivan, a Republican strategist, said the idea is “smart” and “gives extra legs to a story.” “When you can give a visual example, it helps,” he said. “It’s trying to draw attention to the protests so that it doesn’t look and frame it in such a way that it’s not just a bunch of angry people with purple hair throwing rocks.”

Bruce Cain, a political science professor at Stanford University, said that even though a costume “can project frivolity and a partylike atmosphere,” they do counter “the image of the Democratic Party as a violent party.” “If the president is going to invoke the Insurrection Act, he has to go to the court and show them, ‘Here’s some violence,’” Cain said. “It seems to me if you were going to start a fight you wouldn’t want to be looking like Mickey Mouse.”

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