Crowds protesting against the purge of US government billionaire Elon Musk under President Trump Tesla dealer In some cities across the US and on Saturdays, The wealthiest man in the world.
Protesters are trying to escalate movements targeting Tesla dealers and vehicles against the role of newly created masks Government Efficiency Sectoror Doge, shutting down an entire institution that attempted to gain access to sensitive data and reduce government spending. Most of Musk’s estimated $340 billion fortune is made up of the stake he holds at an electric car company he continues to work with.
Previous protests were somewhat sporadic. Saturday marked its first attempt to enclose all 277 of US automaker showrooms and service centers in hopes of deepening The company’s recent decline in sales.
Early in the afternoon, a crowd of dozens to hundreds of protesters flocked to New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, Minnesota and the automaker’s Tesla location in Texas. Photos posted on social media accounts show protesters waving signs like “Honku if you hate Elon” and “Fight against billionaire Broligarki.”
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The Tesla Takedown Movement also wanted to rally protesters at more than 230 Tesla locations in other parts of the world. Vote turnout in Europe wasn’t as big as the US crowd, but anti-muscular sentiment was similar.
About 20 protesters slammed musks outside a London Tesla dealer, with cars and trucks slamming the corners supporting the corners.
One of the signs displayed at the London protest showed a photograph of Musk next to an image of Adolf Hitler saluteing the Nazi. Musk was criticized gesture This will improve immediately after Trump takes office on January 20th. The person in the Tyrannosaurus Rex costume held another indication, depicting a photo of a straight arm gesture of a mask saying, “I thought the Nazis were extinct. Don’t buy a swastika.”
“We just want to get loud and loud, make noise and make people aware of the problems we are facing,” said Cam Witten, an American who appeared at the London protest.
Tesla Takedown was organized by a group of supporters, including the disillusioned owner of the carmaker’s vehicle, celebrities such as actor John Cusack, at least one Democrat and Dallas Rep. Jasmine Crockett.
“I’m going to keep screaming in the halls of Congress, and you guys need them to make sure you keep screaming on the streets,” Crockett said at a Tesla Takedown Organization’s call earlier this month.
In New York City, mayoral candidates and New York State Rep. Zoran Mamdani joined the protesters at Tesla’s showroom on Saturday.
“We’re here the moment we demand all of us,” Mandani told the crowd through a megaphone. “The world’s wealthiest person has bought the President of the United States, so it demands us all.”
Some people opposed masks It’s beyond protest Burn and commit car manufacturer vehicles Other vandalism US Attorney General Pam Bondy has accused him of “nothing but domestic terrorism.” Musk showed he was umbed at the attack during a company meeting on March 20, saying that the vandals should “stop acting as psycho.”
Crockett and other Tesla Takedown supporters have emphasized the importance of maintaining peace on Saturday’s protest.
However, police were investigating a fire that destroyed seven Tesla vehicles in northwest Germany early Saturday morning. It was not immediately clear whether the flames extinguished by firefighters were linked to the Tesla Takedown protest.
Halil Sagirkaya/Anadolu via Getty Images
There have been vandalism at US Tesla dealers, including fires in Nevada and Missouri and graffiti at locations in Massachusetts and Maryland, CBS News previously reported.
Since January 2025, incidents targeting Tesla EVs have occurred in at least nine states, according to a joint information bulletin issued by the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI and FBI. Obtained by CBS News. While US intelligence suggests that lonely actors are behind them, Trump administration officials are committed to cracking down on what they say is a coordinated attack.
There have also been reports of vandalism against parked Teslas, causing individual owners to be nervous.
“My wife warns me, ‘Be careful where you have it’.” Bill Fonte told CBS New York. “If you don’t like the product, don’t buy it. But they’re creating panic and concern for ordinary people like me.”
While the number of consumers who bought Tesla cars before Musk took over the Doge had increased, others slapped bumper stickers in sought to distance themselves from the billionaire efforts to prune or close government agencies.
However, Musk appears not to be worried about expanding sales of new Tesla vehicles at his address to employees on March 20th. He reassured workers that the refreshed company Model Y remains “the best-selling car on the planet again this year.” He also predicted that Tesla will sell more than 10 million cars worldwide by next year, starting with around 7 million cars now.
“There are times when there are rocky moments, there are stormy moments, but what I’m here is that the future is so bright and exciting,” Musk said.
After Trump was elected last November, investors initially viewed Musk’s alliance with President as a positive development in long-term efforts to launch a network of self-driving cars with Tesla.
That optimism helped Trump raise Tesla’s shares by 70% between his November 5 election and his inauguration on January 20, generating an additional $560 billion in shareholder wealth. But virtually all of these profits have evaporated amid the investment concerns over Tesla’s rebound, slowing sales in the US, Europe and China, and Musk spending overseeing Doge.
“This continues to be a true moment for Musk to navigate this brand’s tornado crisis moment and reach the other side of this dark chapter of Tesla,” Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said in an investigation notes up until Saturday’s protest.
