- “Our cities and county must lead with integrity—refusing to fund companies that harm workers, pollute the environment, and erode democracy.” – Karen Rosenkilde Bayne, Woodland Democratic Club
by Vanguard Staff
Yolo County, CA – The Woodland Democratic Club and Davis College Democrats have joined the Divest Musk Yolo campaign, a grassroots effort calling on local governments to cut financial ties with Elon Musk-owned companies including Tesla, SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), Neuralink, The Boring Company, and xAI.
The campaign, co-sponsored by Indivisible Yolo and the Woodland Democratic Club, has also gained support from NorCal Resist, Yolo Interfaith Immigration Network, Tesla Takedown, and Stop the Money Pipeline. According to organizers, the effort has collected more than 1,500 petition signatures, including 1,400 handwritten.
“We’re proud to support this campaign because public dollars should reflect public values,” said Karen Rosenkilde Bayne from the Woodland Democratic Club. “Our cities and county must lead with integrity—refusing to fund companies that harm workers, pollute the environment, and erode democracy.”
The group is calling on Yolo County and its cities to end new financial agreements with Musk-owned companies, review and phase out existing contracts or subsidies where possible, stop official use of Musk platforms, urge CalPERS to halt new Tesla stock purchases in actively managed funds, and require due diligence before approving Musk-related projects such as robotaxi use.
Divest Musk Yolo highlights what it describes as a pattern of harm and risk, pointing to 48 OSHA citations at Tesla, multiple lawsuits against Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and X Corp., environmental violations by Tesla and SpaceX, and a sharp drop in Tesla’s profits in early 2025.
“Elon Musk’s companies have demonstrated a consistent pattern of labor abuses, environmental damage, and disregard for democratic norms,” said Benton Buecker for Davis College Democrats. “Yolo County and its cities should not be complicit by funding or partnering with companies that violate our community’s core values.”
Organizers say the campaign is not symbolic, but a practical measure to ensure taxpayer dollars are used responsibly. “This is about protecting public dollars, workers, and democratic institutions,” said David Allegoren, a Divest Musk Yolo organizer. “No city or county should subsidize or associate with corporations that put profits over people—and show open disdain for accountability.”
The effort is part of a larger national and international push to hold corporations accountable. In June, Charlotte, North Carolina barred new Teslas from the city fleet, while the Lehigh County Pension Board in Pennsylvania halted new Tesla investments. Sweden’s AP7 National Pension Fund divested $1.2 billion from Tesla, Denmark’s Akademiker Pension pulled $45 million, and the Netherlands’ ABP Pension Fund sold its $600 million stake.
In Canada, the Yukon government ended Tesla rebates, canceled Starlink contracts, and left the X platform, while Ontario terminated a $100 million Starlink contract. Taiwan has banned Starlink, and in Europe a quarter of organizations have blocked Musk’s AI chatbot Grok over misinformation concerns.
Pending legislation in California, New York, Missouri, and Colorado aims to increase oversight on Tesla operations, while advocacy groups including the NAACP and LatinoJustice are pressing for broader public divestment.
Divest Musk Yolo says Yolo County could be among the next communities to take action as part of what it describes as a global shift toward ethical and responsible governance of public funds.
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Seems to me that (overall), Tesla is less-impactful in regard to the environment than other vehicle manufacturers regarding the product that they make.
And that they likely make the best electric vehicles in the market. (They’re certainly among the nicest-looking vehicles.)
Regarding self-driving cars, they are going to be a boon to an ageing population – many of whom shouldn’t be driving in the first place. (I’m hoping that they’re fully functioning within my own lifetime, for that matter. I certainly don’t want to discourage production of that technology.) I’m planning to name my self-driving vehicle “James”, so I can say, “Home, James” to it. (A technological chauffeur, as it were.)
But not ready to commit to a robot girlfriend. I do have some standards, at least.
Regarding “X”, I don’t look at it very often, but the previous manner in which it operated (prior to Musk) raised concerns.
Also, wouldn’t Musk’s disassociation with Trump negate at least some of the concerns that the local Democratic clubs have?