TeslaTakedown - North Austin


Details
PROTEST:
- Protest Tesla's support for right-wing populist authoritarianism, right here in Austin.
- Dissuade prospective Tesla customers from buying or leasing new Teslas.
- Educate onlookers and passerbys about the damage that Elon Musk has done to our democracy.
RATIONALE FOR PROTEST:
Watch this speech by a ResistAustin organizer that explains the overall reasoning for our Tesla protest campaign: https://youtu.be/uy1JZn_DYcA
WHAT TO EXPECT
- A protest emcee or two
- A medium size group of people consisting of regulars, semiregulars, and newbies
- Supplies with which to exercise your 1A rights, such as markers and posters
- Water and possibly snacks
- A focal point, like the Tesla store, where you may verbally and visually direct your grievances
- Music
- Chanting
- (Uncertain) Counterprotestors
- Here's a video of the "vibe" though we can't promise another piñata! https://youtube.com/shorts/swClQdntgJ0
COUNTERPROTESTOR GUIDANCE:
"Bullhorn Bully," the serial harasser a.k.a. Will Johnson, most recently visited our protest at Tesla North on 5/24/2025. On that day, he was accompanied by up to 6 members of the WTF biker club, who are documented having aggressively harassed an Austin elected official in 2020, and engaged in an act of attempted intimidation towards ResistAustin earlier this year.
Our guidance is to ignore and/or quietly document Mr. Johnson - he appears to get frustrated and lose focus when no one is engaging with him - he needs protestors to be provoked for his livestream to be entertaining to his audience.
Here are some results of documenting his actions: https://youtube.com/shorts/CfdwxO-CVoo https://youtube.com/shorts/nqxoHfibGsY https://youtube.com/shorts/h_amC8QPm6M
To aid in our effort document counterprotestors and harassers like Mr. Johnson, please "extensively document" any suspicious, harassing, or menacing behavior via photo/video and send the recordings with a brief description of your observations to our email inbox, info@resistaustin.us
WHAT TO BRING
(Basic) - Water in a light thermos or water bottle - Snack - Sunscreen - Hat and/or sunglasses - Light backpack to carry all of the above
(Medium) - Homemade sign w/ or w/o a handle
(Advanced) - Bullhorn/megaphone
PARKING
There is ample parking on the side streets south of Spicewood Springs Rd, beginning with Parliament Place.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Unity and discipline are hallmark principles of successful nonviolent resistance movements and our movement will remain inviting and blameless if we maintain these principles in the face of provocation.

Sponsors
TeslaTakedown - North Austin