On Saturday, M Street in Georgetown filled with the clamor of honking cars, upbeat music, and energetic cheers. The noise came from a protest in front of Georgetown’s Tesla dealership, where about 50 demonstrators gathered to protest Tesla CEO and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk.
The demonstration was part of a movement of dozens of “Tesla Takedown” protests around the country this weekend, which encouraged onlookers to boycott Tesla.
Photo by Katie Doran Protestors gather outside Tesla’s Georgetown storefront.Photo by Katie Doran
Protesters hoped that these boycotts and nationwide demonstrations would send a message by hurting Tesla—and, by extension, Musk—financially.
“We’re here to be like, ‘Hey, don’t buy Tesla right now. If you have a lease, trade it in. If you have stock, sell it. Hit him where it hurts.’ It seems like the only thing he listens to is if his money goes down,” protester Aubrey Lowe said.
Over the past nearly two months, Musk and DOGE have taken aim at a number of departments in the federal government, conducting mass firings and abruptly cancelling government contracts in the name of efficiency. Experts have estimated that as many as 250,000 federal workers and 500,000 federal contractors will lose their jobs in the coming months.
Photo by Katie Doran One of the protest’s smallest attendees takes a stand.Photo by Katie Doran
Many of DOGE’s actions have targeted some of the nation’s most high-profile departments, including the Department of Education, which announced on Tuesday that it is laying off nearly half of its staff. A shrinking federal workforce is already projected to limit the accessibility of government resources such as Social Security, Medicaid, and Veterans Affairs benefits.
In light of Musk’s decimation of social services, demonstrators said that protesting in front of a Tesla dealership was a visible way to show their distaste towards Musk where it hits him most.
“Boycotting and protesting Tesla is strategic. There are very few points of leverage against this unelected billionaire that’s taking over our democracy and our federal systems,” Sara Steffens, who helped organize the March 16 protest, said.
Photo by Sydney Carroll Sara Steffens stands at the protest holding a sign that says, “BOYCOTT TESLA—Don’t feed the fascists.”Photo by Sydney Carroll
In 2025, Tesla’s stock has plummeted 36%, with some experts attributing the dip to growing anger with Musk’s policies, both in the U.S. and across the globe. Last week, the Canadian province of British Columbia ended electric vehicle subsidies for Tesla products amid the nation’s trade war with the U.S. As a result of growing outrage towards Musk and retaliation towards Tesla, Trump turned the White House lawn into a Tesla showroom on Tuesday, telling reporters that he planned to label those protesting Tesla as “domestic terrorists,” and promising that he’d make those who spoke out against Tesla “go through hell.”
Saturday’s protesters were undeterred by Trump’s threats.
“Elon Musk is an unelected official that is trying to dismantle our government in a way that is going to be incredibly harmful for people across the country,” demonstrator Matthew Holland said. “Frankly, there are so many other things to ever confront us with the Trump administration, but this is one of the most public-facing ones, with a Tesla dealership here in town, so we can come out and make our voices heard.”
Photo by Katie Doran Holland, right, poses with another demonstrator.Photo by Katie Doran
While demonstrators expressed their displeasure with Musk, they also emphasized that the protest was about much more than Musk alone.
“This isn’t about Elon. This is about unfettered capitalism that we have allowed to grow by our leaders not putting guardrails on businesses,” Melissa Knutson, who helped organize the protest, said. “This is bigger than Elon. I’m not going to give him the satisfaction of anything like that. This is about people rising up, demanding more from government.”
While many local protests have been filled with an air of solemnity since Trump’s inauguration, the Georgetown Tesla Takedown took a different approach. Protesters danced while pop music blasted from speakers, cheering as passing cars honked in support.
Photo by Sydney Carroll Steffens (left) and Knutson (right) dance on top of a bench while music plays.Photo by Sydney Carroll
“It is a welcome change to bring the joy also to the resistance. A lot of us have been out here a lot in these past number of weeks, and you can see everybody’s feeling it,” Steffens said.
Knutson danced energetically on a bench while holding a sign that read, “Dance against DOGE.”
“We need to get louder, and this is a great way to build a movement by having fun, dance, joy. Too many protests are negative, and I get that people are angry, but they can be a lot of fun,” Knutson said. “You want to grow your party, you need to have a better party.”
Photo by Katie Doran Knutson smiles and poses with her “Dance against DOGE” sign.Photo by Katie Doran
Demonstration leaders told the Voice that they plan to continue protesting in front of Tesla in the coming weekends.
Despite the upbeat tone of the demonstration, protesters emphasized that their concerns were anything but. For many, they’re seeing the impact of Musk’s actions in their everyday lives.
“I want my kids to grow up in a democracy. That’s the number one thing I am really concerned about—the attacks on trans people, on queer people, on immigrants, on people of color. I don’t want them to grow up in a world that’s full of hate,” Steffens said, tearing up as she spoke.
Lowe is a U.S. army veteran. So far, the Trump administration has fired nearly 4,000 workers in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and at least 6,000 veterans across all federal departments. An internal VA memo revealed that the agency has plans to fire more than 80,000 workers by August. Watching Musk decimate the VA, which provides benefits and healthcare to former service members, has been heartbreaking for Lowe.
Photo by Katie Doran Lowe poses with her sign, a Mean Girls reference.Photo by Katie Doran
“He’s firing veterans, he’s firing people in the VA, and I mean, that’s hurting people right now,” Lowe said. “I have friends who can’t get appointments, or their appointments have been delayed. And this is their health and he’s encouraging the administration to not take care of veterans and others, calling them parasites.”
Though protesters are feeling the impacts of Musk’s actions in real time, the protest maintained a tone of joy and hope. When asked what she would say if she could speak directly to Musk, Steffens stressed a message of empathy.
“Empathy is not a weakness, it’s a superpower. I would say that democracy works only when everybody is heard from,” she said. “When you break things in a democracy, what you’re doing is hurting people.”
Photo by Katie Doran Demonstrators gather holding signs in front of the white Tesla storefront.Photo by Katie Doran
