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Several protests have happened against Elon Musk, mostly against Musk's involvement with DOGE and Donald Trump's second administration. [1] [2] [3]
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Several protests have happened against Elon Musk, mostly against Musk's involvement with DOGE and Donald Trump's second administration. [1] [2] [3]
In July 2020, Musk received backlash for his statement on Twitter, “We will coup whoever we want! Deal with it.” This statement is referring to the coup against Evo Morales Ayma, the former president of Bolivia. Where Musk's company, Tesla had interests in the lithium deposits. [4]
In November 2023, Musk faced backlash for his antisemitic conspiracy theories and antisemitic viewpoints that he shared on X (formerly Twitter). The statements were even condemned by then White House Press Secretary, Andrew Bates. Musk was also criticized for allowing the rise of antisemitism on X. [5]
Several protests have happened at Tesla stores, being organized by the movement, Tesla Takedown. [1]
On February 3, protesters gathered outside the Office of Personnel Management and indicated that they would continue to protest for the rest of the week in opposition to DOGE and Musk. The protestors said that Musk had illegally taken control of the government's infrastructure, [6] and raised concerns that Musk was an unelected foreign national who was potentially stealing sensitive information stored in federal computer servers. [7]
On February 5, a rally was held in front of the Treasury Department, organized by word of mouth and social media, with initially 50 participants that grew into hundreds. Participants included federal workers, retirees and others who were alarmed and angry over Musk and DOGE's actions and its trajectory, chanting "Elon Musk has to go" and signs reading "No Trump, No Musk, No Fascist USA" and "Musk owns Trump". Democratic politicians including Senator Chuck Schumer, Senator Chris Van Hollen, and Representative Maxine Waters spoke at the protest. [8] [9]
In March 2025, a website called DogeQuest was published, which published addresses alleged to belong to American owners of Tesla vehicles and DOGE employees. [10]
On March 14, Senator Mark Kelly posted a video on Twitter stating that he would also be selling his Tesla, as it was "built and designed by an asshole." [11]
In March, the protest group, Led By Donkeys used a harrow dragged by a Tesla car to etch the slogan "Don't buy a Tesla", along with Musk doing a gesture that was described as a "Nazi gesture" by the etcher on Black Rock Sands beach. [12]
Vandals have also targeted Tesla properties. [13] A Tesla store in Loveland, Colorado, was damaged multiple times in late January and February. In Salem, Oregon, on January 20, witnesses stated that Molotov cocktails were thrown at the Tesla store sparking two fires doing an estimated half million in damages. Then, on February 19, the windows were damaged by bullets at the Salem Tesla store. On March 2, twelve Teslas were set on fire at a store in Toulouse, France, destroying eight vehicles and damaging four. Seven Tesla charging stations were set on fire near Boston on March 3. On March 6, at least seven shots were fired at a Tesla store in Tigard, Oregon. [14] [15] [16]
On March 20, 2025, NPR reported that the arrest of three people who had vandalized Tesla dealerships and charging stations raised the question of whether or not such actions constituted domestic terrorism. NPR reported that these cases had included "using Molotov cocktails to set fire to Tesla cars and charging stations and possessing other 'incendiary devices' and a suppressed AR-15 rifle." NPR stated, "While no one has been injured or killed by these attacks, three professors and researchers of domestic terrorism and extremism tell NPR that they consider these cases to be acts of domestic terrorism." Bruce Hoffman, senior fellow for counterterrorism and homeland security at the Council on Foreign Relations said, "It's absolutely domestic terrorism. I know that may discomfort many people. But vandalism is a crime that if it's committed with a political motive, can certainly be defined as terrorism." [17]
When questioned about the vandalism while speaking with Fox News' Sean Hannity Musk raised claims that the vandalism and violence were originating from Democrats without any evidence. He stated; "It's really come as quite a shock to me, this violence from the left. I thought the Democrats were supposed to be the party of empathy, the party of caring, and yet they're burning down cars, and firing bullets into dealerships... Tesla is a peaceful company. We've never done anything harmful, I've never done anything harmful. I've always done productive things". Musk further added how he believed there was a “mental illness thing going on,” and suggested that Americans could be upset with the Department of Government Efficiency's actions, and being lead by a "larger force" who are funding and coordinating the violence. [18]
Musk also alleged that the violence was caused by individuals upset with being denied benefits that were obtained fraudulently claiming that “...when you take away the money they’re receiving fraudulently, they get very upset... They basically want to kill me because I’m stopping their fraud and they want to hurt Tesla because we’re stopping this terrible waste and corruption in the government. And well, I guess they’re bad people. Bad people do bad things.” [18]
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