Boycotts to Protest the Trump/Musk Administration

This boycott was sparked by reports that Airbnb's billionaire co-founder Joe Gebbia joined Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has already cut over 30,000 federal jobs and recommended dissolving agencies such as the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Gebbia's announced that he voted Republican in the 2024 U.S. election.

The Amazon boycott is driven by several key concerns:

• Amazon's impact on small businesses and local economies
• Treatment of workers and opposition to unionization efforts
• Corporate tax practices and perceived economic inequality
• Rollback of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives

The boycott against General Mills is driven by several key concerns:

1. Rollback of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives following President Trump's executive actions to terminate DEI programs at the federal level
2. Corporate practices perceived as contributing to economic inequality and corporate greed
3. Tax policies and practices of major corporations

The boycott is driven by several key concerns:

1. Content Moderation Changes - Meta ended its U.S. fact-checking program on April 7, 2025, replacing it with a "Community Notes" system similar to X. Critics fear this will increase misinformation and far-right content.
2. DEI Program Elimination - Meta terminated its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs for hiring, training, and supplier diversity in January 2025.
3. Policy Changes on Hate Speech - Updates to Meta's hate speech policies now permit the classification of LGBTQ individuals as mentally ill due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. This change is part of broader revisions to Facebook's content moderation guidelines, which now allow users to make such claims in the context of political or religious discussions. Such statements were prohibited under Meta's earlier policies.
4. Political Alignment - Many users perceive Meta's changes as deliberately aligning with the Trump administration, including hiring Dustin Carmack (a Project 2025 chapter author) to develop Meta's new content moderation approach.
5. Controversial Ad Practices - Meta has been criticized for profiting from ads promoting illegal Israeli settlements and far-right settler activity.

The boycott against Home Depot is driven by several key concerns:

1. Political Affiliations - Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus (who died recently) was a major Trump donor, having contributed $7 million to Trump's 2016 campaign and likely similar amounts for re-election efforts. Despite Marcus leaving the company in 2002, critics point out that much of his wealth remained tied to Home Depot stock, meaning a percentage of every dollar spent at Home Depot indirectly supported his political activities.
2. DEI Rollbacks - Like other major retailers in the boycott movement, Home Depot has been targeted for scaling back diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives following President Trump's efforts to eliminate such programs at the federal level.
3. Market Dominance - Some boycott advocates criticize Home Depot's "pseudo-monopolistic" market position (alongside Lowe's), arguing that their dominance allows them to control pricing unfairly and prioritize profits over environmental concerns, workers' rights, and local community interests.

Many consumers have expressed intentions to shop at Lowe's instead, with one social media user stating: "Home Depot is close to my house. I drive past Home Depot to get to Lowe's, on the other end of town. #BoycottHomeDepot"

The boycott against McDonald's is driven by several key issues:

1. Middle East Conflict - McDonald's perceived support for Israel in the Gaza conflict sparked widespread boycotts in Muslim-majority countries. This has "meaningfully impacted" McDonald's performance in international markets.
2. DEI Rollbacks - In early 2025, McDonald's announced significant reductions to its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The company discontinued aspirational quotas for diverse leadership, paused participation in external diversity surveys, and removed mandatory supplier diversity criteria.
3. Corporate Practices - The People's Union USA cites concerns about corporate tax practices, economic inequality, and alignment with the Trump administration's policies as reasons for their planned boycott.

The boycott against Target is primarily driven by the company's January 2025 decision to roll back its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, including:

• Discontinuing hiring targets for minority groups
• Dismantling an executive committee dedicated to racial justice
• Phasing out programs aimed at assisting Black employees in developing careers
• Ending initiatives promoting Black-owned enterprises
• Replacing DEI terminology with "Belonging at the Bullseye" approach

These changes came shortly after Donald Trump took office and amid his administration's threats to investigate what it terms "illegal DEI," potentially involving criminal charges against corporations.

The Tesla Takedown movement is an active, global grassroots campaign with protests occurring at Tesla facilities worldwide. 

The boycott is primarily driven by opposition to Elon Musk's role in the Trump administration, specifically:

1. DOGE Involvement - Musk's leadership position in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has cut approximately 100,000 federal jobs and recommended shutting down agencies like the US Agency for International Development and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
2. Political Influence - Concerns about an unelected billionaire having significant influence over government policy and access to sensitive personal information of millions of Americans
3. Ideological Opposition - Musk's perceived alignment with right-wing politics, including what some protesters characterize as support for extremist views.

The Tesla Takedown campaign employs several tactics:

• Urging consumers to boycott Tesla vehicles and sell existing ones
• Encouraging investors to divest from Tesla stock
• Organizing peaceful protests at Tesla showrooms and facilities
• Creating public awareness campaigns with slogans like "Don't buy Nazi cars" and "Honk if you hate Elon"

The boycott against Walmart is driven by several key concerns:

1. DEI Rollbacks - In November 2024, Walmart rolled back its diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. The company announced it would not renew its five-year commitment to a racial equity center created after George Floyd's death, would no longer consider race and gender diversity of suppliers, and would not participate in surveys measuring workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ people.
2. Corporate Practices - John Schwarz, the founder of The People's Union USA, has criticized Walmart for what he describes as corporate dominance and tax avoidance. In a statement to Newsweek, he said, "Our goal is straightforward: we want these corporations to begin paying their fair share of taxes so that the American populace can finally be relieved from the burden of federal income tax."
3. Economic Inequality - Organizers cite concerns about rising prices while wages remain stagnant. Schwarz stated, "We've been watching prices rise while wages stay the same. We've watched these companies rake in billions while families can barely afford groceries."