Billionaires and tech moguls: US presidential inauguration sparks online backlash

The 47th presidential inauguration of Donald Trump unfolded amid a whirlwind of controversy, drawing support and sharp criticism online. 

Flanked by billionaires, tech moguls, and global leaders on Monday, Trump used the occasion to sign a series of executive orders, including a ban on birthright citizenship, a declaration of a "national emergency" at the southern border, and a delay to the contentious TikTok ban.

There are many highlights from the inauguration party and Trump’s speech, but one of the topics that drew the most attention was Trump’s remarks on Gaza. 

After the inauguration, a reporter in the Oval Office asked the president whether he was confident a ceasefire would hold in Gaza. 

Trump said he was not confident, saying that “It is their war,” before adding, “Gaza is like a massive demolition site. It has to be rebuilt differently… It’s a phenomenal location on the sea. Some fantastic things could be done with Gaza.”

These comments received widespread backlash online from pro-Palestinian social media users, with UN special rapporteur for Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese likening the US to the “Real Estates of America”.

President Trump on Gaza on his first day in office: "Gaza's interesting. It's a phenomenal location. On the sea, the best weather. ..Some fantastic things could be done with Gaza" (cit)

Welcome to the Real Estates of America. pic.twitter.com/YXzdLRRy3t

— Francesca Albanese, UN Special Rapporteur oPt (@FranceskAlbs) January 21, 2025

Some social media users also questioned the durability of the ceasefire agreement that went into effect right before Trump’s inauguration and argued that Trump “does not care” if it holds. 

For Trump, the ceasefire was nothing more than a decorative prop for his inauguration. Now, he couldn't care less if it's dismantled. https://t.co/LJa5hvVJV9

— Dr. Mustafa Elmasri (@Gaza_Psych) January 21, 2025

While the inauguration excitement was happening, in central Rafah in Gaza, the Israeli army allegedly shot and killed 15-year-old Zakaria Barbakh as he rode his donkey, according to an eye witness who shared a video on X.

According to the witness, when another man tried to drag the child away, Israeli forces opened fire on him, too, in a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement. Many journalists online criticised the lack of coverage by western media and questioned what would happen if the situation was reversed. 

The Israeli military also bombed and raided Jenin in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday, right after Trump said “he is not confident” that the ceasefire would hold.

Elon Musk’s ‘Nazi salute’

One image from Trump’s inauguration day has had the longest-lasting impact so far, and it doesn't involve Trump, directly.

At the end of his speech celebrating Trump's inauguration, tech mogul Elon Musk made a gesture while thanking the audience.

He drew his right hand into his chest, paused for a long moment, and then thrust his arm outwards as tens of millions watched nationwide and thousands of Trump supporters in the auditorium cheered.

The moment went viral online, with people suggesting that Musk gave a "Nazi salute".

The gesture started a wildfire of reactions online, with many suggesting that it was "fascism", "illegal", "aggressive", and "disgusting", asking how such a gesture could be made at a presidential inauguration.

The controversy around it grew when the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), which has a long history of demonising pro-Palestinian activism, joined the conversation in a tweet that seemed to give the benefit of the doubt to Musk’s gesture, defining it as an “awkward gesture” and not a Nazi salute.

Many social media users were quick to note what they called the "hypocrisy" of the treatment of many symbols of Palestinian resistance, such as the watermelon and the Palestinian keffiyeh.

Musk supporters argued his gesture was not a Nazi salute but a socially awkward demonstration of love because Musk suffers from autism disorder. This led pro-Palestinian accounts to say that this was also hypocrisy. 

Zionists accused Greta Thunberg (an autistic woman) of antisemitism for having an octopus plushie on her pro-Palestine photo, but Elon Musk's sieg heiling is apparently just an innocent, awkward autistic outburst of enthusiasm 🤡

— 𝐍𝐢𝐧𝐚 ☽☾ (@aglimpseofnina) January 21, 2025

Many online lashed out against the ADL for their explanation and expressed their resentment, sometimes with words but also through memes. They argued that the benefit of the doubt given to the tech billionaire was not given to the university students protesting against Israel’s war on Gaza across the US throughout the war on Gaza.

College student says Free Palestine.

“ANTI-SEMITE!”

Elon does a Nazi salute on live television.

“Now, hold on. Let’s not get too hasty.” https://t.co/NqCdNdaSaP pic.twitter.com/KRbzpNaxRL

— Ben T. Hopson ✊🏾🌹 (@BHOPDaMaestro) January 21, 2025

Back in June 2024, Wikipedia's editors voted to declare the ADL "generally unreliable" on Israel and Palestine, as well as the issue of antisemitism.

The ADL has a long history of targeting Palestinian rights movements and accusing them of antisemitism. It has previously worked with US law enforcement to spy on Arab-American groups and has also facilitated and funded US police training trips to Israel. 

In 2023, Musk questioned whether to ban the ADL from posting on X, which Musk owns, in response to a trending hashtag against the group.

He then said of the ADL, "Because they are so aggressive in their demands to ban social media accounts for even minor infractions, [the ADL] are ironically the biggest generators of anti-Semitism on this platform.”

Musk's tweets sparked severe backlash from pro-Israelis, leading to advertisement withdrawals from X and even a condemnation from the White House. Soon after the backlash, Musk took a trip to Israel, where he met with Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu and has since been supportive of Israel and its war on Gaza.