It has been months that the world is held captive in the grip of coronavirus. With health systems burdened and the threat of global recession looming large on nations across the globe, the American dream faces heightened challenges. Built on the premise of equality, liberty, and pursuit of happiness, the American dream is a national ethos of the United States that promises upward social mobility of individuals achieved through hard work and dedication. While coronavirus has brought the world to a standstill, Americans have risen to protest against the restrictions placed on their movement and lifestyle. Demanding the restrictions to be relaxed and businesses to be reopened, citizens across many states took to streets in large numbers citing their constitutional rights and labeling the lockdowns as ‘fascist’.
Amidst this backdrop, the CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, who has been a fierce opponent of lockdowns since early March took to the news with his controversial opinions and actions concerning Tesla’s Fremont factory. The concerned factory is an automobile manufacturing plant located in Fremont, Alameda County, California. Closed since March 23rd over coronavirus fears, Tesla had been planning on reopening the factory on May 4th, when the lockdown order was supposed to be lifted. Musk, who has repeatedly called the coronavirus panic as “dumb”, last week threatened to move the factory out of California and sue the county officials. Following the tweet that addressed his desire to move out of California if restrictions continue to loom large, states like Texas and Nevada presented their wish for Tesla to relocate the factory to their states asserting their pro-business policies. Post the storm his tweet caused, Musk officially reopened the Fremont plant the following Monday. He stayed by his decision and said: “If anyone is arrested, I ask that it only be me.” As a response to the defiance, the officials asked Tesla to cease operations until they have reviewed the plan and have “held productive discussions” to reach an agreement. Post his threat of relocating the factory which generates maximum revenue for Tesla, the county officials have recommended safety measures which if Tesla follows, they can reopen their factory by the next week. By far, the country officials have not taken any action against Tesla for ignoring the order but have noted that the Fremont police would check that Tesla adheres to the safety measures.
However, Musk’s desire to reopen his factory points towards several crucial debates that nations across the world are grappling with. This dispute over the reopening of a major automobile factory is a part of the bigger debate in the US about how to re-open the economy after shutdowns. The discussion has now split into political lines, with Republicans urging a faster relaxing of restrictions. President Donald Trump tweeted that “California should let Tesla & Elon Musk open the plant, NOW. It can be done Fast & Safely!” While many experts claim that people attended the protests because of ‘simply’ being frustrated by the lockdown strangling their ability to make a living, the media have described many of these demonstrations to be suggestive of the Trump campaign events, hinting towards a hidden political agenda that puts thousands at risk of contracting the virus.
In addition to the global pandemic taking a political outlook, Tesla has also been accused of putting the workers within the factory in a strenuous position. The company through an email has informed employees that they may remain home but would not be paid and might also lose unemployment benefits if they choose to not join after they had used up their time off, reported Niraj Chokshi in The New York Times. By prioritizing profit over workers, Tesla has been criticized for not taking enough precautions for the safety of the people concerned. Its urge to reopen business has also once again raised an important issue of what constitutes an “essential” business across the globe? Thus, by labeling the lockdowns as “unconstitutional” and “fascist”, Musk and protestors alike have successfully kindled the spirit of the American Dream with chants like “Give me liberty or give me death” becoming a popular mantra.
Therefore, although Tesla’s Fremont factory goes to production this week, the concerns over the political handling of a global pandemic and the plight of the workers remain pertinent issues. Thus, while Tesla’s share price has recovered nearly all of the slump caused by the coronavirus outbreak with a rebound in the shares to $799 from a low of $361 on March 18, the world waits to see if Musk can manage to win the war against coronavirus as he emerged victorious in his battle with the county officials of California.
By Soumya Dixit
Sources :
- Coronavirus lockdown protest: What’s behind the US demonstrations? (2020, April 21). Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52359100.
- Hamilton, I. A. (2020, May 13). Elon Musk flirts with Colorado and Texas as US states battle to be the site of Tesla’s HQ. Retrieved from https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/elon-musk-flirts-with-colorado-and-texas-as-us-states-battle-to-be-the-site-of-teslas-hq/articleshow/75714289.cms.
- Root, A. (2020, May 14). Tesla Won the Battle to Reopen Its Fremont Factory. Why It Could Still Lose the War. Retrieved from https://www.barrons.com/articles/tesla-factory-reopening-health-risks-fremont-deliveries-second-quarter-51589472800.
- Chokshi, N. (2020, May 13). Coronavirus Wrecked Tesla’s Momentum and Elon Musk Is Furious. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/13/business/Elon-Musk-tesla-factory-coronavirus.html.
- Neate, R. (2020, April 29). Elon Musk tweets protest against US coronavirus lockdown. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/29/elon-musk-tweets-protest-against-us-coronavirus-lockdown.
- TSLA.(n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/stocks/tsla.