Public anger has been growing against automaker CEO leading ‘Department of Government Efficiency’
By RICK HURD | rhurd@bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News Group
UPDATED: March 28, 2025 (EastBayTimes.com)
Protests are expected to dot the map throughout the Bay Area, the United States and the globe Friday and Saturday as angry residents say they will make known their feelings against President Donald Trump, billionaire Elon Musk and the seeming rise of hate.
They promise they’ll do it peacefully.
One of the largest campaigns is called the “Tesla Takedown,” the main thrust of what organizers are calling a “global day of action” against Musk, the tech billionaire, CEO of the automaker and the controversial head of the Department of Government Efficiency. Musk has led an aggressive campaign to dismantle parts of the federal government — a move that has largely led so far to mass layoffs and firings of government workers across many departments.
“Elon Musk is destroying our democracy, and he’s using the fortune he’s built at Tesla to do it,” the group wrote on a web site promoting the protests. “We are taking action at Tesla to stop Musk’s illegal coup.”
Ahead of that effort, one group scheduled a panel discussion for Friday night in Santa Clara to discuss the protests and many of the issues that Trump and Musk have shown in interest in changing, including education, labor rights, health and social services.
The Tesla Takedown leaders insist that the foundation of their protest movement is that it be a peaceful one. They said they will avoid the violent behavior that has marked some demonstrations against Musk and his Tesla dealerships.
Last Saturday, Berkeley police arrested a suspect after that person activated a stun gun during a protest at a Tesla dealership. In Las Vegas last week, police said Molotov cocktails were used to ignite the vehicles at a Tesla dealership and that bullets were fired into three cars.
Protesters say their hope is to draw rallies at all 276 Tesla dealerships nationally and that their controlled anger will spur people to sell their Tesla vehicles and stock in the company. Tesla’s stock price has fallen nearly 50% since December from $500 a share to less than $264 per share at noon Friday.
A protest not affiliated with the “Tesla Takeover” will also be held at 4 p.m. Friday on the Burnett Avenue overpass in Morgan Hill in what a group is dubbing: “Taking Back the Overpass.” The group said on social media that it is holding the protest “to show the hateful pro-Trump, pro-Nazi factions that Morgan Hill is a peaceful community.” The group said a Nazi flag had been hung on more than one occasion from the Burnett Avenue overpass.
Here’s a list of the Tesla and Global Day of Action protests planned this weekend:
Friday, March 28
4:30 p.m.
Redwood City: El Camino Real and Jefferson Avenue
5 p.m.
Oakland: 3200 Grand Ave.
Berkeley: College and Ashby avenues
El Sobrante: San Pablo Dam Road and Appian Way
Saturday, March 29
10 a.m.
Santa Clara: Stevens Creek and Winchester boulevards
11 a.m.
Vallejo: 1001 Admiral Callaghan Lane
11:30 a.m.
San Mateo: 1528 El Camino Real
Noon
Berkeley: 1731 Fourth Street
Walnut Creek: 1246 Broadway
Dublin: Dublin Boulevard and Amador Plaza Road
San Francisco: 999 Van Ness Avenue
Originally Published: March 28, 2025 at 7:09 AM PDT
