Andrew Tate, former kickboxer and reality TV star turned influencer, has an immense grasp on social media right now, especially for his numerous misogynistic comments and heavy ideals on masculinity. But after several months of increased popularity and controversies, his words have finally caught up with him, having been banned from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok — where he was blowing up the most.
He wasn't given a warning beforehand, signifying how out of hand his controversies were getting, but it didn't mean that the content creator was unaware of his controversial remarks. The influencer was suspended on Twitter in 2017 for harmful tweets, so this isn't the first time he has been taken down.
Tate uses most of his platform to discuss his "hot" takes, usually ones regarding his views on feminism as well as his strong masculine beliefs that stir up controversy. His strong opinions have garnered the likes of men's rights activists and far-right activists and his "playboy-like" persona has also inspired men of the like.
Amongst the several jarring comments was one on his opinion about dating 18-year-old women rather than a woman in their mid-20's. He claimed that dating women in adulthood allows men to "make an imprint" on them since they might not be experienced with dating. His opinion on this is so adamant that he has repeatedly discussed it on several other videos and podcasts.
Other remarks have been so abysmal that any resurgence of him saying it on tape gets taken down immediately. One instance includes when he threatened to "bang out the machete, boom in her face and grip her by the neck" in response to what he would do if a woman were to cheat on him.
The comments go on and on, as he never stops this type of harmful behavior as his videos reach millions of viewers before they are taken offline.
It hasn't just been a recent thing that Tate has been doing, he has been making misogynistic remarks for several years. Not only have there been remarks, but there have been past accusations of physical abuse as well, as he's openly talked about his violence towards women in his videos. The earliest instance of abuse was when he was taken off "Big Brother" UK in 2016 after a video showed him hitting another female contestant with a belt.
His controversies dive even further with his mansion in Romania being raided by police after a tip from the U.S. Embassy accused him of holding a woman hostage. Police ended up finding nothing but the authorities have stated that the investigation is still ongoing. So not only does Tate have a tarnished reputation for making misogynistic remarks, he has also been accused of human trafficking.
Tate had previously discussed why he even moved to Romania, claiming that with their legal system he is not going to be prosecuted as harshly as he would while living in the UK. Several have speculated that his move to Romania verifies that he has committed some wrongdoings, including human trafficking, and is trying to get out of them.
His apparent impact on younger communities was one of the main concerns prior to his bans, especially his influence on young impressionable men. Teachers have voiced their concerns regarding the so-called "King of Toxic Masculinity," embarking on stories of their male students bullying or making offensive remarks to their fellow female classmates.
His influence runs even deeper as he made a profit off of his masculine agenda, creating an online subscription course called "Hustler's University". Subscribers would have to pay $49 a month to learn how to become a hustler just like Tate. The Guardian reported that before the service was shut down, it had 127,000 members.
One of his other businesses was considered to be a "total scam" as he raked in millions of dollars off of men that would pay for webcam calls with women wearing lingerie.
Most people who are not fans of the influencer would also spread his content to share how disgusting and revolting his misogynistic comments were. Not only has he been given labels such as "predator" and "groomer" but he has also been heavily made fun of as many memes are curated, joking that the influencer is being banned in more outlandish places.
Backlash has come from his devoted fans as Tate was heavily banished off of most major platforms, several stating that it disrupts free speech. Most other users on social media are supportive of the bans, expressing that it is a win for stopping hate speech.
On several occasions, Tate has expressed his carelessness for the comments he makes, as he repeatedly exclaims, “Cancel me, I do not care” in a podcast that came out just weeks before the ban. He has since made an hour-long response video, which he uploaded to Vimeo, where he states that he is “very understanding” of the bans and proceeds to not be mad about it. However, he claims that his views weren’t meant to be controversial and were taken completely out of context. Tate had also stated in his response that he would be starting a foundation dedicated to “helping with men’s mental health and also protecting women against violence from men.”
But regardless of all the bans and backlash towards the influencer, Fox News had proudly featured Tate on Tucker Carlson’s show to refute his bans. Going forward, the influencer has now moved his content to Rumble, a video website platform mostly used by far-right content creators.
Despite the determination to block his content from the major social media platforms, several hardcore fans are spreading his videos even more than before, so it might take a while for his profuse hold on social media to loosen. But no matter how long Tate will be banned from these platforms, his possibility of regaining a platform that would be safe and harmless to others is extremely minuscule.
