Swastika, a Hindu symbol falsely branded as a symbol of hate by Elon Musk
United States 
30 March, 2025
Case Summary
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, falsely branded the Swastika, a sacred and auspicious Hindu symbol, as a symbol of hate. Musk was responding to a video showing a Tesla owner confronting a person who defaced his Tesla EV with a Nazi symbol, however, instead of calling what it actually is, Musk called the Nazi symbol ‘Swastika’. In a recent incident, Chadd Ritenbaugh, 55, was charged with criminal mischief, harassment, and disorderly conduct after he scratched a Nazi symbol Nazi Hakenkreuz (hooked cross) onto a Tesla SUV parked at a Planet Fitness gym in Pennsylvania. The incident, which occurred in broad daylight, was captured by the vehicle’s camera system, a feature widely used in Tesla cars for security purposes. Surveillance footage from the gym later identified the suspect, showing him entering the building shortly after the act. His clothing matched what was seen on the Tesla’s camera, helping authorities link him to the crime. Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, commented on the case, stating that defacing a Tesla with a hate symbol, such as a swastika, is clearly a hate crime. “Anyone who scrawls a swastika on a Tesla has obviously committed a hate crime,” Musk wrote. His tweet came in response to a post from a US Republican senator, emphasising the seriousness of such actions and the potential for broader societal harm linked to hate symbols. Anyone looking at the symbol on the Tesla car will notice that the symbol that Elon Musk dubbed Swastika is actually the Nazi Hakenkreuz. There are some obvious contrasts between the holy Hindu Swastika and the Nazi Hakenkreuz, an emblem that represented one of the most brutal cults that the world had witnessed in the 20th century,
Why it is Hate Crime ?
This case has been added to the tracker under the prime category of- Hate speech against Hindus. Under this, the sub-category selected is- Anti-Hindu slurs, mocking faith. Anti-Hindu slurs and the deliberate mocking of the Hindu faith owing to religious animosity involve the usage of derogatory terms, stereotypes, or offensive references to religious practices, symbols, or figures. One of the common anti-Hindu slurs used against Hindus is “cow-worshipper” and “cow piss drinker”. The intention of using this term is to demean and mock Hindus as a group and their religious beliefs since Hindus consider the cow holy. Additionally, some symbols and the slurs attached to them have a historical context that exacerbates the insult, hate, stereotyping, dehumanisation and oppression against Hindus. Cow worship has been used for centuries to denigrate Hindus, insult their faith and oppress Hindus specifically as a religious group. There has been overwhelming documentation about how cow slaughter has been used to persecute Hindus with cow meat being thrown in temples and places of worship. There has also been overwhelming documentation where cow meat (beef) has been force-fed to Hindus to either forcefully convert them to Islam or denigrate their faith. Apart from cow worship, the Swastika – which holds deep religious significance for the Hindus – has also been misinterpreted and distorted to use as a slur against Hindus. Similarly, the worship of the Shivling has been used by supremacist ideologies and religions to denigrate Hindus owing to religious animosity. Such slurs and denigration stem out of inherent animosity and hate towards Hindus and their faith, therefore, it is categorised as hate speech targeted at Hindus specifically owing to their religious identity. This incident qualifies as a hate crime because it involves the misrepresentation and mocking of Hindu symbols, specifically the Swastika, which is a sacred Hindu symbol. By incorrectly labelling the Swastika as a hate symbol, Elon Musk has mischaracterised its cultural and religious significance, fuelling animosity towards Hindus. There is a huge difference between the two symbols, which Musk considered as one and the same, thereby hurting Hindu feelings. The Swastika, distinct from the Nazi Hakenkreuz, is a symbol of auspiciousness and well-being in Hinduism. When translated from its Sanskrit root, Swatika comprises of ‘su’ meaning ”good” and ‘asti’ meaning ”to be”. In other words, well-being. It dates back some 6,000 years to rock and cave paintings. Scholars generally agree it originated in India. It has also meant a symbol of good luck, prosperity and all things auspicious for other ancient cultures, including the Vikings and Greeks, besides Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. A religious symbol for Hindus, the Swastika was first mentioned in the Vedas. It symbolises many things like Surya (the sun) and Brahma, the creator. It is seen as a power symbol and is also the emblem of Ganesha, the god of good luck. In both Hinduism and Jainism, the Swastika is used to mark the opening pages of account books, doors and thresholds. In fact, it is found that the Swastika was also used in Ancient Greece and can be found in the remains of the ancient city of Troy, which existed 4,000 years ago. The ancient Druids and the Celts also used the symbol. It was used by Nordic tribes and even early Christians used the Swastika as one of their symbols, including the Teutonic Knights, a German medieval military order, which became a purely religious Catholic Order. Furthermore, the American Jewish Committee, one of the country’s oldest Jewish advocacy organizations, released a leaflet clarifying the distinction between the Swastika used for millennia by Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cultures and the deformed Nazi version of it. In fact, in May 2022, the Hindu Council of Australia issued a press release wherein it objected to the proposal to include the Swastika in hate symbols. They pointed out that while the Council stands with the authorities and communities to ban the hate symbols, it “strongly opposes the prohibition or criminalisation of our ancient, auspicious and holy symbol, the Swastika.” They further added that it was disappointing that MP referred to the Nazi symbol as Swastika and not as “Hakenkreuz” or the Hooked Cross. The Council further urged the MP to publicly clarify that prohibition would be limited to the Nazi hate symbol ‘Hakenkreuz’ and NOT the holy Swastika. It is important to note here that it is entirely possible that Elon Musk made that statement out of ignorance for Hindu religious practices, given that until a few years ago, there was no awareness in the West about the significance of the Swastika for the Hindu community. In fact, Wikipedia has also linked the holy Hindu Swastika to the Nazi symbol. However, since such speech has a compounding effect on dehumanisation of Hindus and delegitimisation of their faith, this case is being added to the Hinduphobia Tracker
Case Status
Unknown
Perpetrators Details
Perpetrators
Others
Perpetrators Range
One Person
Perpetrators Gender
male
Sources 
