The Shady Side Of Andrew Tate
The following article contains references to sexual assault, domestic violence, racism, homophobia, and mental illness.
Notorious being an understatement, Andrew Tate is undoubtedly one of the most controversial social media figures in the world. The avowed misogynist went from a successful kickboxing career to promoting violence against women with his audience of impressionable boys and men. With the rise in self-professed incels the world over, critics contend that Tate has capitalized on, even exploited, the trauma of lonely young men for his own benefit. As The Observer argues, "Andrew Tate's notorious, harmful rhetoric lives on, with more and more men and boys falling down the dangerous pipeline from casually listening to devoutly following the overly toxic misogynistic influencer."
Tate touts the sort of brazenly sexist rhetoric that would have raised eyebrows even in the 1950s, where "The Honeymooners" patriarch Ralph Kramden famously and frequently threatened his wife by saying, "One of these days... you're going to the moon" (an allegory for domestic violence). Perhaps Ralph is a hero to Tate, who has condoned beating women and having authority over them, making him perhaps the most notable canceled celeb of 2022.
Although he was banned from Twitter for five years, his account was restored once Elon Musk took over the platform and began a mass reinstatement of controversial accounts (via Insider). Understandably, this led to a huge backlash, with many expressing fears over the contentious influencer once again having free reign on the app. While we await the next controversial statement from Tate, let's take a look at the shadiest moments of the guy known as "the king of toxic masculinity" for his flagrantly misogynistic remarks, per GQ.
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
Andrew Tate was exposed for allegedly beating women
In 2016, Andrew Tate appeared on "Big Brother," but his time on the reality series came to an abrupt end. In footage obtained by The Sun, Tate was shown slapping and beating a woman with a belt. He was also seen threatening and swearing at her using sexualized language. A friend revealed that he was shocked when Tate sent him the video on WhatsApp. "It looked like he had caught her messaging men and he was pretty angry about it," the insider said. "I couldn't work out whether it was consensual or not and the slaps sounded pretty loud. Overall it was pretty shocking and looked violent." However, Tate insisted that the act was part of consensual BDSM, with the pair acting out roleplay. He also claimed that he would never hit a woman and that the "Big Brother" team wanted an excuse to ax him.
Despite what Tate may assert, sending the video to his pals is undeniably a violation of his ex partner's privacy. Moreover, he has openly condoned hitting women. As The Guardian notes, one of Tate's videos shows him advocating physically assaulting women. Regarding any girlfriend who might accuse him of infidelity, Tate said, "It's bang out the machete, boom in her face and grip her by the neck. Shut up b****." Subsequently, domestic violence charities have warned that the influencer is a danger to women and to the men who subscribe to his ideology.
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
Andrew Tate blamed rape victims
On numerous occasions, Andrew Tate has seemingly condoned sexual assault. Following revelations that movie mogul Harvey Weinstein was a serial sexual abuser, a collective outrage ensued. But Tate had a decidedly different take on the matter. In a series of anti-MeToo tweets (via Metro) in 2017, he claimed that women were partly responsible for being raped. "A man looking at you or whistling at you or asking your name isn't harassment," he wrote. "This belief does discredit as a whole... stop pretending normal male behavior is rape." In another tweet he wrote, "If you put yourself in a position to be raped, you must bare [sic] some responsibility... with sexual assault they want to put zero blame on the victim whatsoever." One has to wonder what "responsibility" victims of crimes ought to bear. Tate also suggested that women who flirted with men were asking to be sexually assaulted.
According to The Guardian, he said that one reason he moved to Romania was due to the country's lax rape laws. "I'm not a rapist, but I like the idea of just being able to do what I want. I like being free," he declared. During an appearance on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," he also propagated the fallacy that women routinely fabricate rape allegations against men (despite the fact that the majority of rapes go unreported). Due to the extremely pernicious nature of such sentiments, many agree that the influencer has normalized rape culture for a generation of young men.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
He made homophobic and racist remarks
In addition to his misogyny, Andrew Tate has made alarming homophobic and racist remarks (despite the fact that he himself has African-American ancestry through his father). In 2016, he was exposed for using slurs against gay people, Asians, and Black people, per Digital Spy.
During an appearance on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," Tate posited that there are worse people in the world than himself, and bizarrely, pinpointed Black, openly gay rapper Lil Nas X as one example of a supposedly abhorrent individual. "If men grow up to be like me you're going to have a whole bunch of people with no criminal record, dedicated athletes, who protect and provide for the people close to them... I'm certainly not the worst influence out here, Piers," he claimed. "You have Lil Nas twerking on the devil on music videos, which our children are digesting." Nas X clapped back at Tate's thinly veiled homophobia and racism in quintessentially witty and classy fashion. "andrew tate please stop mentioning me!" he tweeted. "I am never gonna let u smash loser!" As Hope not Hate highlights, Tate's remarks contribute to the hateful alt-right fallacy that LGBTQ people represent increasing degeneracy in society. For instance, Tate reportedly admitted (according to Hope not Hate) that he loved Romania because "there's no open homosexuality... No homosexual agenda."
Tate has also taken aim at Meghan Markle, arguing in one of his videos that the duchess had no right to identify as Black or speak out against racism because "she's basically white," before rehashing a number of racist stereotypes against African-Americans.
If you or a loved one has experienced a hate crime, contact the VictimConnect Hotline by phone at 1-855-4-VICTIM or by chat for more information or assistance in locating services to help. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.
The influencer claimed depression isn't real
In 2017, Andrew Tate made headlines when he dismissed the notion of depression being a serious illness. In a series of tweets (via Cosmopolitan), he wrote, "Depression isn't real. You feel sad, you move on... Natural to sometimes FEEL depressed. It doesn't make it a DISEASE. I feel hungry sometimes, then I change it." He was swiftly slammed for his hot take, with myriad Twitter users explaining that depression is a classified disability in many states, and the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S.
When he appeared on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," Tate addressed his controversial stance on mental health. While he acknowledged that people may feel depressed, he repeatedly dismissed Morgan's insistence that clinical depression is a real illness.
The influencer recounted an instance in which he spoke to a suicidal man over email and gave him advice. "Listen, go to the gym, get a six pack first. Once you've got a six pack, email me again," he recalled telling the man, after asking if he had sought medical help. "If you still feel like killing yourself, I don't know what else to say to you, but I'd say a strong body is a strong mind." Much like Tom Cruise did in his infamous Matt Lauer interview, Tate touted exercise as an alternative to medication in treating depression. However, as Morgan pointed out, Tate's pseudoscientific claims are absurd considering that doctors the world over are in agreement that clinical depression is real.
If you or someone you know needs help with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
Muslim feminists condemned Andrew Tate for misrepresenting Islam
When Andrew Tate announced his conversion to Islam in 2022, many Muslims criticized the influencer for his erroneous interpretation of the religion. During an appearance on "Stand Out TV," Tate railed against women having multiple sexual partners, declaring that the Quran agrees with him that so-called promiscuous women should be shunned from society and "stoned to death." "The whole idea of a female wanting to sleep with more than one man at a time is Haram," he asserted.
Writing for The New Statesman, Muslim feminist Aisha Ali-Khan condemned Tate for misinterpreting Islam and called out some Muslim men for giving him a free pass due to his newfound religious beliefs. Subsequently, she accused Tate of exploiting vulnerable young men with his controversial take on the religion, and of causing severe harm to Muslim women in the process. "...I am not at all bothered by someone calling me a Kafir. I will pray for them even more, and ask that Allah guides us all," she wrote. "But Tate's views are still being used to justify, spread and reinforce toxic masculinity and misogyny." Meanwhile, as Al Jazeera argues, "I suspect that it is white Islamophobic and Orientalist misperceptions of Islam as being a religion that permits violence towards women that are the basis for Tate's conversion."
Additionally, Tate's conversion appears disingenuous considering that he has praised the British far-right, anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson, once stating, "Tommy Robinson is doing his very best to protect England from Islamicization," per Hope not Hate.
Andrew Tate's alleged pyramid scheme
Donald Trump had Trump University; Andrew Tate had Hustler's University. According to a video posted on Hustler's University's official site, Tate founded the online establishment to teach boys and young men how to become rich and live the high life. "You're finally in a place where you stand a genuine chance, where there's genuinely information that can change your life," he claims in the video. The influencer goes on to assert that 20-year-old students of Hustler's University are able to purchase diamond-encrusted watches and Lamborghinis thanks to the supposed wisdom he imparts.
As Australia's ABC News pointed out, the whole thing sounded suspiciously like a pyramid scheme, though Tate denies such accusations. According to an investigation by The Guardian, students of the university were encouraged to post controversial content online as a means of attaining notoriety, more clicks and network traffic apparently equating to more cash: "Members, including boys as young as 13, are told they can earn up to £10,000 [around $12,200] a month through lessons on crypto investing, drop shipping and by recruiting others to Hustler's University..."
But it seems that the person who was actually benefiting from this content was Tate himself, who has seemingly raked in millions through his 127,000 devotees paying $50 a month to be part of the scheme. In August 2022, Tate closed down the university, per The Guardian. In his appearance on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," he did not deny that he had profited from the social media attention, when pressed on the issue.
Andrew Tate has been accused of sex trafficking
As previously mentioned, Andrew Tate has praised Romania as supposedly being a safe space for men to get away with behavior that would otherwise be classified as sexual assault. In April 2022, police raided his home in Romania, under suspicion that he and his brother, Tristan, had trafficked two women, one an American, to the country and held them against their will. The mother of one of the reported victims, who was 20 at the time, expressed her concern, alleging that Tristan had coerced her daughter to the home he owns with Andrew. "She's a very good child," she explained. "I think that's why he bullied her, because she's too naïve ... I think he saw her as naïve and good and brought her here. He wanted to sell [her] here or abroad."
In an interview with The Daily Beast, Tristan denied the accusations levied against him and his brother, stating that no arrests had been made. Meanwhile, as the outlet notes, Andrew mocked the raid on Instagram in his misogynistic fashion, remarking, "Officer ... l think we can all agree that b****es love to lie," once against propagating falsehoods that women fabricate sexual misconduct allegations. During an appearance on "Valuetainment," he claimed that the human trafficking accusations were fake news and blamed the arrest on Romanian officials supposedly being quick to accuse people of the crime, of which it has a notable history.
On December 30, 2022, it was reported that both brothers were arrested in Romania on charges of rape and human trafficking. Along with two others arrested with them, they will be in custody for at least 30 days, according to The New York Times.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
He encouraged men to date teens
When it comes to dating, Andrew Tate is in no shortage of controversial opinions. One such hot take is his belief that grown men should date literal teens. In an interview with the Nelk Boys that's nothing short of icky, he contended that men are attracted to youth because the younger the woman, the less likely they are to have had multiple sexual partners. "People will sit there and go, 'You can't say that.' Yes I can. A 19-year-old is more attractive than a 26-year-old woman... 'cause that 26-year-old has talked to more guys, been to the club more times..." said Tate, who is steadily approaching 40. During an appearance on "Off the Record," he dismissed the notion that grown men cannot date teenagers as "pure Western bulls***," asserting that it's perfectly normal for 60-year-old men to date 18-year-olds in Russia. He added that he would never date a woman over 25.
Addressing the remarks on "Piers Morgan Uncensored," Tate insisted that encouraging men to date teenagers in lieu of women in their 20s is not misogynistic. "It's not anti-women," he asserted. "I'm saying that an 18 or a 19-year-old woman would be more desirable... Anti-25-year-old women we can argue, but not misogynistic." Morgan countered that the comments were indeed misogynistic and an example of toxic masculinity. Tate seemed to be saying that he favors virginity and youth when it comes to sexual partners, although he also claimed that his previous comments on the issue were part of a moderation and reflected others' beliefs.
Andrew Tate's links to the far right
He may have converted to Islam, but Andrew Tate has a long history of being friendly with openly Islamophobic, far-right individuals. A report by Hope not Hate details the extent of his affiliations with the alt-right. Tate has been photographed holding a MAGA hat while posing with extreme conservatives Candace Owens and Paul Joseph Watson; he declared his love for Trump and a strict immigration policy; and he praised Infowars conspiracy theorist Alex Jones as supposedly representing a beacon of sanity to counter leftists. The latter remark was made during an interview with 21 Studios, in which Tate waxed lyrical about Jones, arguing, "If you're gonna judge a man by his passion and his patriotism, then he's number one... We need Alex Jones." Tate has appeared on Infowars, where he and Jones agreed on Q-Anon-style conspiracy theories.
In his interview with Piers Morgan, the host grilled Tate on his support for Jones, who propagated fallacies that the Sandy Hook shooting was staged by actors (in court, Jones later admitted that he lied and that the shooting did indeed occur).
The influencer claimed that he didn't know anything about Sandy Hook or the families' lawsuit against Jones, but also refused to retract his respect for the controversial conspiracy theorist, nor condemn him. "When I meet somebody and they show me respect, I show them back respect," he reasoned, inexplicably adding that he would also show respect to a Nazi if they were polite to him in 1930s Germany.
He admitted to scamming people for millions
Andrew Tate and his brother, Tristan, operated a webcam scheme in which men paid models who purported to be in either financial or emotional hardships. During an appearance on the "Fresh and Fit" podcast, the influencer said that he started the business after finding himself beset with money woes when his MMA career came to an end. Accordingly, Tate claims, he enlisted the five women he was simultaneously dating at the time to pose as webcam models to extract cash from unsuspecting men, though only two agreed to the shady scheme. "I had 75 women working for me in four locations," he boasted, adding that he was raking in $600,000 per month.
Both brothers admitted that the whole thing was one big racket. "It's a total scam," Andrew told The Mirror. "The model just has their hands on a keyboard that isn't even plugged in. I have real professionals... behind the scenes getting men hooked, finding out their interests, the name of their dog." His brother detailed the extremes that men using the service would resort to to get women to like them, including a man who offered tens of thousands of dollars worth of inheritance money to a model. After initially taking pity on the man, Tristan soon allowed his staff to drain him of his money. The brothers became exceedingly rich from the scheme, which enabled them to purchase swanky vehicles and live a life of luxury, but at the expense of myriad vulnerable and lonely men.
Polyamory is only for men, according to Andrew Tate
Andrew Tate has discussed his penchant for polyamory. While he openly admits to cheating on his girlfriends, he disapproves of women having multiple lovers. In an interview with John Anthony Lifestyle, he recalled an instance in which one of his supposed 75 girlfriends cheated on him. Tate said that he dumped the woman, who was indignant because he had cheated on her numerous times. "I make it clear: Me having sex with other women is not cheating... It's cheating if you do it. It's not cheating if I do it," he said. "If you will not be loyal to me regardless of the fact that I have unlimited females, I don't want to be with you. Goodbye." He added that he doesn't allow his girlfriends to have male friends either. He even said he had access to the women's Instagram accounts on his phone and monitored the messages they received.
On the "Fresh and Fit" podcast, Tate essentially referred to women as if they were playthings for his use and disposal, insisting that he can have sex with as many women as he wants without cheating because infidelity supposedly requires love and respect for the partner with whom one cheats.
Tate appeared on Barstool Sports' "BFFs" podcast and used pregnancy as an excuse for women not having multiple partners, then claiming that all men in history were married to multiple women. He later added, "If I have a woman and I'm responsible for her, which I want to be 'cause it's my masculine imperative, I need some degree of authority."