--- title: "Tesla Targeted With Worldwide Protests, Vandalism" description: "Around the world, folks angry at Elon Musk's new turn as an unelected White House wrecker are taking it out on Tesla. " date: "2025-02-18" modified: "2025-02-18" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/tesla-targeted-protests-vandalism" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "elon musk" - "politics" - "protests" - "tesla" --- # Tesla Targeted With Worldwide Protests, Vandalism ![Around the world, folks angry at Elon Musk's new turn as an unelected White House wrecker are taking it out on Tesla. ]() *People participate in a "TeslaTakedown" protest against Elon Musk outside of a Tesla showroom in Seattle, Washington, on February 15, 2025. Musk leads the efforts under the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and was speaking at the White House with Trump, who has in recent weeks issued a flurry of orders aimed at slashing federal spending. (Photo by Jason Redmond / AFP) (Photo by JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images) \Image: JASON REDMOND/AFP via Getty Images\* Around the world, folks angry at Elon Musk's new turn as an unelected White House wrecker are taking it out on Tesla. From Nazi allusions spraypainted on a [Tesla showroom in The Hague]() and the word "[Heil]()" projected onto the German Gigafactory to [busted windshields]() and a [failed arson attempt]() at a dealership in Colorado, those opposed to Musk's increasingly far right politics are [taking it out on his electric vehicle company](). Over the weekend, protesters organizing under the social media hashtags "[#TeslaTakedown]()" and "[#TeslaTakeover]()" have begun planning — [and enacting]() — demonstrations against the billionaire head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) as he continues to [massively disrupt the American government](). At a [San Francisco Tesla showroom](), for instance, employees were unable to leave while hundreds of people surrounded it in protest over President's Day weekend. While people outside chanted slogans like "Resist the oligarchy" and "Deport Musk," the [*San Francisco Standard* reports](), someone in the second-floor office above the dealership held up a sign in the window that said "[We Hate Him Too]()" — and it remains unclear whether that person worked for Tesla, or for another company renting the space above the showroom. https://www.twitter.com/FredericLambert/status/1891958055543194107 Jeff Grubler, a longtime activist who has been [crusading against Donald Trump for years](), wore a Musk mask and repeatedly performed a "Sieg Heil" salute at the SF Tesla protest while wearing a red armband with the "X" logo — a reference not only to [Nazi symbolism](), but also to Musk's own "[Roman salute]()" last month. "Calling Elon Musk a Nazi is not a stretch," Grubler told the *SF Standard*. "He made two Nazi salutes, and there’s a coup going on." Though groups like the progressive coalition Indivisible are [imploring protesters to remain peaceful](), others aren't above damaging some property. Further north, for instance, a bold vandal spray-painted the word "Nazi" on a man's Tesla in Portland while the owner and his son were watching the Super Bowl, [local broadcaster *KGW8* reported.]() "That happened in broad daylight," that man, Tim Tees, told the news outlet. "I mean, he was brazen." Like the unidentified hater above that San Francisco Tesla showroom, Tees said that he, too, is not a fan of the billionaire. "I get the people are upset about Elon," the Portlander told the local news outlet. "I'm upset about Elon, you know." After shelling out to get the Nazi vandalism scrubbed, Tees took on his own small act of protest — purchasing a bumper sticker that says "[I bought this before Elon went crazy]()," which he plans to apply later. **More on anti-Musk aktion:** [*State Department Insider on Elon Musk Accessing Nuclear Weapons: “If You Make Something Idiot-Proof, the World Will Build a Better Idiot”*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()