Elon Musk’s head is on the line. Following anti-Semitic behavior, Tesla’s major investors are demanding that Elon Musk be sidelined for a few months, or worse, removed as CEO of the company.
Communications between investors began to emerge through the billionaire’s posts on his private social network, X (formerly Twitter). Musk endorsed a post that claimed the American Jewish community instilled “hatred against white people,” and went on to attack the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) — a civil rights group against anti-Semitism.
In addition to positioning by investors, the same behavior created a stampede in advertiser pool X. Apple and IBM were among the companies that stopped advertising on the platform; With Mação being one of the most important advertisers on the social media network.
Dustin Moskovitz, co-founder of Facebook, believes in a post on his Threads account that Musk should resign from all of his companies.
Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management, which owns 400,000 Tesla shares, says Musk’s actions are outrageous and that his behavior is causing damage to the brand. “I’ve never had this with any company I’ve invested in in my life.”
Other significant investors in the electric car company, such as Jerry Brackman and Christine Hall, who together have amassed more than $250,000 in Tesla stock, say there is no excuse for hate-mongering by any CEO of any publicly traded company.
“Tesla’s board of directors should put him on leave for a month or two,” Brackman claims. Hull, on the other hand, was more explicit, stating that there should be oversight by the board, with “Demotion, reassignment, suspension or even dismissal“For the investor, the lack of more serious punitive measures by the Board of Directors is worrying.
Even the White House issued a statement condemning Elon Musk’s actions: “anti-Semitism and racial hatred.”
Despite Elon Musk’s stance and the growing complaints from Tesla investors regarding the CEO’s behavior, the company’s shares did not lose value. Taking the controversies into account, the company’s shares are up about 10% in the past week.
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