NEWSLETTER
Why are people protesting against Elon Musk?
Elon Musk, once celebrated as a technological visionary behind Tesla and Spacex, has faced a growing reaction due to its political ties, controversial corporate decisions and provocative public statements.
Born in 1971 in Pretoria, South Africa, Elon Musk co -founded ZIP2 in 1995, which was sold to Compaq in 1999. Then he launched x.com, who merged with Confinity to form PayPal, acquired by EBAY in 2002.
His subsequent companies, Spacex (2002) and Tesla (2004) solidified their state as leading innovative in aerospace and electrical vehicles. In 2022, Musk acquired twitter for $ 44 billion and then renamed the platform as x, integrating it into its broader vision of an “application of everything.”
Initially held for its technological contributions, Musk's public image began to change at the end of 2010 for several reasons:
- Political participation: The Musk Association with conservative policy, especially its support for the president of the United States, Donald Trump, and his role as head of the Government Efficiency Department (Doge), generated criticism. Its promotion due to important federal cuts of expenses and eliminations of the program fed discontent.
- Corporate practices: Decisions such as relocating Tesla de California to Texas and implementing controversial work practices contributed to negative perceptions. These actions were considered to prioritized profits on employees' well -being and regulatory compliance.
- Public statements: Musk's public communications, especially on social networks, often caused controversy. Critics accused him of spreading erroneous information and promoting conspiracy theories, which eroded confidence between certain groups.
Did you know? Despite Elon Musk's popular narratives as an entrepreneur made to himself, he came from a rich South African family. It is suspected that his father, Errol Musk, has an emerald mine in Zambia, and Elon has acknowledged receiving his family's financial support during his first companies.
Anti -Latin musk protests in 2025
By 2025, the aforementioned factors culminated in generalized protests aimed at Musk and their commercial interests.
The manifestations were driven by central complaints:
- Wealth disparity: The net assets of Musk, which reached $ 400 billion in December 2024, had decreased to $ 298 billion by April 2025 due to the fluctuations of the stock market and political controversies. His accumulation of wealth highlighted the growing economic inequalities, and protesters consider it emblematic of systemic problems that favor the ultra rich.
- Political influence: Musk's important political commitment, particularly his advice role for Trump and influence on Doge's policies, has generated concerns about the concentration of power among rich elites. Critics feared that this influence would undermine democratic processes and prioritize corporate interests on public welfare.
- Corporate practices: Actions such as aggressive cost reduction measures, perceived labor exploitation and controversial commercial decisions led to dissatisfaction between employees and consumers. The “Tesla Takedown” movement, for example, addressed Tesla's exhibition rooms, criticizing the leadership and corporate strategies of Musk.
- Social and environmental concerns: Musk's commercial decisions were also analyzed for their social and environmental impact. The protesters questioned the work practices of Tesla and the environmental implications of some of their companies, asking for more ethical and sustainable corporate behaviors.
Did you know? A Brookings opinion article in March 2025 called the choice of names of Doge as a “brand error”, while a CNN/ORC survey found that 62% of respondents saw it as “inappropriate” for a government agency and 44% felt that they damaged confidence in the reform efforts of the administration.
Tesla protest events in 2025
The “Tesla Takedown” movement, with demonstrations in more than 250 cities worldwide, aimed to challenge Musk's influence.
Originated in early 2025, this base initiative organized non -violent protests in Tesla's locations in the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia.
The protesters asked for boycott and urged the public to deviate from Tesla selling their vehicles and actions, with the intention of economically impacting Musk and questioning their political influence.
Two key factors fed the protests:
- Labor practices: Tesla faced accusations of violations of labor rights, including the reports of employees who were fired for expressing dissident opinions. The National Labor Relations Board had 24 open investigations on Musk companies, including accusations of illegal layoffs in Spacex.
- Environmental concerns: The protesters criticized the environmental history of Tesla, highlighting issues such as supposed negligence in the installation and maintenance of solar panels, which led to fires on the roof in the Walmart stores. Walmart filed a multimillionaire demand against Tesla, claiming the negligent installation and the maintenance of solar panels caused fires on the ceiling in seven Walmart stores dating from 2012.
Decline sales figures underlined consumer discontent. In the first quarter of 2025, the deliveries of global vehicles of Tesla fell 13% year after year to 33,681 units, marking the lowest quarterly performance of the company since mid -than 2022.
Did you know? While it was intended to be peaceful, some protests became acts of vandalism. For example, on March 24, 2025, incendiary devices were discovered at a Tesla dealership in Austin, Texas.
Spacex 2025 controversy
Spacex's activities also attracted scrutiny, particularly regarding regulatory security and compliance.
The explosion of spacecraft 2025 served as a marked reminder of the risks associated with private space exploration. The greatest and powerful rocket has disintegrated minutes after takeoff, dispersing the debris in protected areas and remittics debates on safety, environmental responsibility and regulatory supervision in the private industry of space flights.
Musk's political participation further complicated things. Serving as Dux chief, he supervised important federal cuts of expenses and deregulation efforts. This role led to conflicts of interest, especially with respect to the agencies that regulate their businesses.
For example, Spacex faced fines of the Federal Aviation Administration for safety violations, including the operation of an unveiled launch control room and the use of rocket fuel not approved, for a total of $ 633,009.
What the future holds Elon Musk in the midst of an increasing reaction?
Musk's entanglement in political affairs, particularly his advice with President Trump and Doge's leadership, has led to an important public disapproval.
An February 2025 survey indicated That 52% of Americans had an unfavorable vision of Musk, with only 29% expressing their approval.
In response to the growing criticism, the reports suggest that Musk is considering moving away from his governmental advice to focus on his commercial companies. Such movement could be aimed at mitigating the public perception that its political activities are negatively affecting Tesla's performance.
However, given the history of unconventional decisions and resilience of Musk, it is not clear whether to distance themselves from politics will calm down completely in public dissent or restore consumer confidence in Tesla.
