Tesla Tyranny: Upland Protest 3/15
By Rene Madrigal
Photo By Alyssa Valle
1: Protesters gather outside of Upland Tesla Dealership
Beginning at 12 PM on March 15th protesters began forming around the Upland Tesla Dealership.
Their demands and demographics were scattered, some of their signs more direct than others, from the fairly mundane “We didn’t vote for Musk” to the evocative “Nicht Mein Fuhrer” (Not My Fuhrer).
Photo By Alyssa Valle
2: Various Protestors Display their Flags and Signs
Despite a rocky start with plenty of heckling aimed at my female photographer from an old man in a pickup truck and a man screaming from his Cybertruck speaker. The man in the pickup truck and “Is that the Bible? You should read it” (it was a notes journal) from a man yelling at the crowd while parked in his Tesla Cybertruck, the protest was met by a mostly supportive crowd.
A few shouting fests did occur, particularly between Protestors and the aforementioned Cybertruck Heckler. “President Trump is the best President ever” repeated the Cybertruck, “Take your estrogen and chill the fuck out” retorted a protester.
Photo By Alyssa Valle
3: The Cybertruck Heckler (Spent Nearly an Hour Yelling at the Protestors Over the Vehicle’s Speakers)
By 12:40 a much larger crowd had amassed. Wrapping all the way from the Tesla dealership to the corner of N Campus Ave and a bit more, roughly 150 people were in attendance. A huge amount for a relatively small and lonely street.
The cacophony of supportive honking also grew to blot out any other disparate cheers or stray conversations (including my interviews).
Photo By Alyssa Valle
4: Protesters Were Particularly Packed Around the Arco on the Corner of E 20th St and N Campus Ave
The crowd was particularly diverse, with the majority being of retirement age, but a decent number of young people as well.
When asked, Marsha Tudor (retirement age and self-described full time protestor) professed that she hoped the protests would put a dent in Tesla’s sales.
Tudor credited the 2016 election of Donald Trump as the specific radicalizing moment that drew her to protesting.
The defunding of the EPA and climate as a whole is the largest concern for Tudor, “We have abdicated our responsibility” she said in reference to older generation’s perceived lack of concern over climate change.
Photo By Alyssa Valle
Figure 5: Protestor waves an upside down American Flag.
Michael Herbert, a retired former engineer, who waved an upside down American flag (though is not the person pictured above) worries heavily about Musk’s 290 million dollars invested into President Trump’s 2024 political campaign (the precise number is 288 Million according to The Washington Post).
He anxieties lie in what he believes is Musk’s attempt to drive the US away from being a constitutional republic and to establish a fascist regime.
Photo By Alyssa Valle
Figure 6: Fascism Ahead