Andrew Tate Is Much Worse Than You Think

On August 22, Social Media influencer and retired kickboxer, Andrew Tate, had his accounts banned on YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram. Tate had amassed millions of followers across his accounts, including 4.6 million followers on Instagram and over 700,000 subscribers on Youtube, many of whom were impressionable young men. He frequently broadcasted misogynistic and sexist views across his platforms, many of which too egregious to write here. While his claims about women are atrocious and disgusting, it was his connection to a human trafficking and rape investigation that appeared to be the reasoning for his social media ban. Meta (Facebook and Instagram’s parent company) claimed that Tate had violated the “dangerous organizations and individuals policy.” While Tate’s deplatforming has been well-documented, his criminal activity, coupled with his audience, makes Andrew Tate a man who is far more dangerous than many realize.

Born in America to a British father, Tate gained fame as a British kickboxer. Tate’s first public controversy came in 2016, when homophobic and racist tweets made by Tate came to light. A subsequent video of Tate beating a woman with a belt (an incident both parties insisted was consensual) led to Tate’s removal from the British reality show, Big Brother. Tate came under renewed scrutiny a year later in 2017, when amidst the Harvey Weinstein scandal, he claimed that women who were victims of sexual assault shared responsibiliy for their assaults. This claim was deeply offensive to millions of American women, as one in six experience sexual assault at somepoint in their life. Tate gained notoriety amongst far-right circles following appearances on Infowars and other right-wing talk shows, embracing his reputation as a sexist and misogynist.

Tate has made various and somewhat contradictory statements about his commentary. Notably, he has stated that he plays a “comedic character” and claims to be a “success coach.” While it’s easy to point out that there’s nothing comedic in making light of sexual assault, Tate’s audience may not see it that way. Though Tate may like to think his audience consisted of swathes of alpha males, the reality is that the majority of people his content reaches are young men—teens to millennials—people his views are most likely to leave a dangerous imprint on. The situation had become bad enough that teachers were creating online spaces to discuss how to handle Tate-pilled students. Tate’s audience being as young and impressionable as it is makes his views not just deplorable, but incredibly dangerous.

Tate doesn’t just pose a metaphysical threat, either. In April 2022, Tate’s Romanian estate was raided following concerns that an American woman was being held at the property. The DIICOT (Romania’s equivalent of the FBI) expanded the investigation to include human trafficking and rape allegations after discovering that both the American woman and a Romanian woman were being held against their will. According to the DIICOT, the investigation is still ongoing. Less severe but still notable, Tate and his brother, Tristan, operated a web cam business that Tate himself admitted was a total scam. The brothers employed models who would tell sob stories to men, who would in turn fork out hundreds of dollars in hopes of having a relationship with the women. Tristan bragged about the business without remorse, saying he didn’t care about those he and his brother scammed because “It’s their problem.”

By now, I hope I’ve established that Andrew Tate is not only a narcissistic misogynist but also a criminal and a conman. Following Tate’s removal from most major social media sites, many people brought about claims of censorship and concerns that it might upset his teenage audience. While just ignoring Tate might impact his ego and deprive him of the attention he might think he deserves, it wouldn’t cut off his revenue stream or his central audience. Deplatforming Andrew Tate, a man who is at best a rampant sexist and con artist, was the only logical way to disrupt his influences. Tate’s social media ban is a win for society.