A movement to challenge Tesla CEO and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk has moved beyond social media and into public demonstrations this weekend. Groups of protesters gathered at Tesla showrooms across the country, displaying signs with messages such as "Stop the broligarchy," "Burn a Tesla, save democracy," and "DOGE is a criminal enterprise," urging potential Tesla buyers to consider alternative options.
Dubbed the TeslaTakeover, these protests were orchestrated by a determined group of Bluesky users with assistance from Seattle-based activist group the Troublemakers and direct action organization The Disruption Project. Many of these events were listed on Action Network, culminating in 50 planned protests nationwide by Saturday. These demonstrations occurred in various locations, including small towns and major cities like California, New York, Washington D.C., Ohio, and even Canada. The event page reads: "Sell your Teslas, dump your stock, join the picket lines. Hurting Tesla is stopping Musk. Stopping Musk will help save lives and our democracy."
Set for February 15, the TeslaTakeover rallies varied in size—from small gatherings to large crowds—all unified by the message that Musk's actions are fundamentally wrong. "This isn't just about voicing our anger at Elon Musk's unelected takeover," explained one Bluesky user in a post reshared multiple times. "It's about informing our friends and neighbors that buying, owning, charging, and servicing a Tesla directly supports him. Taking down Tesla's sales and stock price is our best way of hitting back. That starts tomorrow!"
Globally, Tesla owners and observers are pushing back against Elon Musk's rapid encroachment into federal government affairs. This reaction is fueled by allegations that the SpaceX owner is associating with alt-right figures. Earlier this year, protests erupted at the German Die Welt Economic Summit where Musk was scheduled to appear virtually, following his decision to support a German far-right political party.
Meanwhile, American leaders are urging the courts to restrain Musk's unconstitutional approach to federal oversight. On February 13, 14 state attorney generals filed a lawsuit against Musk, questioning the legality of DOGE's actions and requesting the court to bar Musk from issuing orders to entities outside the executive branch or overseeing the disbursement of federal funds. Earlier in the week, a coalition of cybersecurity organizations, including the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), filed a lawsuit against Musk's DOGE for allegedly forcing the Office of Personnel Management and Treasury Department to release Americans' sensitive digital information to unauthorized personnel. The lawsuit described it as the largest data breach in U.S. history.
