A Tesla protest in Raleigh yesterday took one North Carolina driver by surprise. Not long ago, the right-leaning swing state protesting Donald Trump and Elon Musk would have seemed unlikely. Now, the fascist and destructive policies of Trump and his allies have provoked protests across the U.S. Even so, the sidewalk protest against Trump and Musk at the Raleigh Tesla Center was unexpected. Much of North Carolina initially embraced Trump. Many have turned away from the president, however, after seeing his authoritarian policies in action. Now even right-leaning areas are speaking out.
Raleigh Tesla Protest Surprises
Protesting and mocking Musk is an increasingly common sight in many areas but still a surprise to many in red states. While filming the Tesla protestors in Raleigh, TikToker _scott_johnson_ was taken aback by the show of solidarity, saying, “So I was driving through Raleigh today, and this is what I saw. This is incredible. This is a swing state that leans Republican, and you have this kind of solidarity all out here.”
The TikTok about the protest received over 1.8k likes and numerous supportive comments. “Beautiful to see 👏👏👏 Make Elon Cry Again,” said one. Anti-Tesla and anti-Musk sentiment was high even before the billionaire started doing Nazi salutes. Now that he’s led DOGE to conduct a series of devestating federal cuts, protests are even more common. Now many in Raleigh are taking a public stand. As another commenter said,
Oh my Gawd I love my NC FAMILY 💙
The Raleigh protestors are in good company. Every U.S. state has April protests planned. With the Trump administration and its oligarch allies becoming more unpopular by the day, protests like these will only become more common. The old red and blue state destinctions matter less and less as the people stand united against the fascists in charge. It’s a new look for North Carolina and the U.S. but a welcome one.
