More Tesla showroom protests planned for this weekend
Protestors are planning more demonstrations outside Tesla showrooms nationwide this weekend, as Elon Musk’s polarizing behavior and political activities within the Trump administration continue to have negative side effects on his electric car business.
The protests are being advertised on BlueSky under the tags “Tesla Takeover” and “Tesla Takedown,” similar to demonstrations held last weekend. At least three dozen events are listed on Action Network’s website, with a banner urging people who own Tesla vehicles or stock in the company to divest, sell their vehicle, and “join the picket line.”
It’s unclear how many people will join the demonstrations, and whether there is even a clear leader behind the movement. Alex Winter, a progressive activist and actor who played Bill in Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, posted about it on BlueSky.
Still, it’s a sign that Musk’s company as well as the millions of vehicles that he has sold continue to serve as a target for people angry and frustrated by the unelected billionaire’s efforts to take over the federal government at Trump’s behest, shutting down whole agencies and targeting federal workers for layoffs.
It has led to vandalism in some cases. Social media is rife with images of Tesla vehicles defaced with swastikas or slapped with stickers of Musk throwing a fascist salute at Trump’s inauguration. Earlier this month, police in Arcata, Cali., received several reports of Tesla owners finding threatening notes on their cars, warning them to sell their cars or risk the consequences. “No Nazis in America,” several of the fliers read, according to local reports.
Several Tesla shareholders have expressed a desire for a change in leadership at the company, worried that Musk’s growing polarizing reputation could significantly impact the company’s financial future. But that seems unlikely in the near term, given Musk’s broad shareholder support. Still, Tesla’s stock price has plummeted 30 percent from its all-time high in December, including a 21 percent selloff since Trump’s inauguration, ABC reports. Tesla sales were down year over year in 2024 for the first time in over a decade. And the company appears to be in free fall in Europe, plummeting in several key markets like Norway, France, and Spain, Wired found.
For years, Tesla’s fortunes have been inextricably linked to attitudes toward its controversial CEO. When people thought Musk was going to usher in a brighter future, full of robotaxis and trips to Mars, the value of the company went up like one of his rocket ships. But now that he’s being labeled a fascist while leading a shadowy effort to root out “DEI” and “woke ideology” in the federal government, Musk is becoming more of a liability than an asset.