Men need a role model. Considering the stigmas involving the mental and emotional health of men in the world today, it is no surprise to find out that 77% of all men suffer from some sort of common mental health issue, all the while only 40% of men feel as if they are allowed to speak about their mental health.
The world is constantly shutting the feelings of men out, leaving them defenseless in their own minds and feeling as if they are not allowed to speak about how they feel. “Alpha males” such as podcaster, kickboxer and internet personality Andrew Tate provide flashy lifestyles, wealth, and fitness routines that draw in crowds of young men searching for a good role model, however Tate’s idea of self-improvement can be toxic for those who look up to him.
Andrew Tate feeds off of the insecurities of men as a way to profit. Most of his podcasts and interviews revolve around the idea of money, power and lust, describing himself as a “Top G,” which refers to a person who is capable in all realms, according to Urban Dictionary.
Although all of these things sound intriguing on the outside, underneath his blanket of wealth and fitness, there is a man who repeatedly teaches misogynistic practices, ridicules body types and radicalizes men to believe in what Tate believes.
Throughout his podcasts, youtube videos and speeches, Tate is known to openly discuss topics such as rape and abuse in a manner that most would find sickening, however because he has such a high number of young men who look up to him, several of them find his messages to be accurate.
Tate describes himself as “absolutely a sexist” and “absolutely a misogynist,” going as far as to say that he prefers women that are as young as 19 because they have been with less men and are therefore sexually innocent.
“The reason that 18 and 19-year-olds are more attractive than 25-year-olds is because they’ve been through less dick,” Tate said. “I’ll say this right now on the fucking internet; I don’t give a shit. A 19-year-old is more attractive than a 26-year-old woman and I’ll tell you why. That 26-year-old has talked to more guys, been to the club more times, been more places, been fucked and dumped more times, been in more arguments, more heartbreak, more bullshit, more mess for me to clean up.”
It’s comments like these that sent the internet spiralling, especially considering the fact that Tate’s following is in the multi-millions. Tate’s misogyny spreads like wildfire, and men everywhere are picking up on what he is saying solely because of his wealth and his dedication to fitness.
In this interview, Tate then goes on to say that he can leave an “imprint” on a younger woman, which gives men the idea that it is okay to do the same thing.
“With a 19-year-old, she might have had one guy from high school, just broke up. She’s young. She’s fresh, and I can fucking put my imprint on her,” Tate said.
Apart from the blatant misogyny Tate displays in his videos, the internet celebrity has also racked up several allegations of sexual assault, as well as being accused of being involved in a Romanian sex trafficking investigation, all of which Tate denied.
After being removed from most social media accounts for his consistent misogynistic comments and allegations of rape and sex trafficking, Tate left the internet with one final message.
“I became the most googled man on the planet and to a degree I’m a victim of my own success.” Tate said. “I can learn things. If I have a point of view and someone challenges it in a very adult, correct and logical way very often I change my point of view.”
Although Tate states that he can be persuaded to change his opinions in the statement above, time and time again he has proven the opposite, constantly speaking out in favor of misogynistic values, toxic masculinity and sexism.
