Combatting The Andrew Tate Effect Begins With Us

The internet has this on full display in feminist spaces, or in the male counterpart “manosphere” spaces on Twitter and TikTok. Despite his claims to infamy, Andrew Tate has served to demonstrate how bad it’s truly gotten.

Whether Andrew Tate became prominent in the news because of the media’s desire to demonstrate that “toxic masculinity” is in full force and present in 100% of men, or because the truly monstrous allegations against him are closer to the truth than fiction, his anti-celebrity/celebrity status (depending on how you see him) indicates two notable problems in our culture: 1) that we will jump to highlight and talk about horrible, vile men and keep them in the news cycle for several months; and 2) that we, as a society, have allowed the behavior of men to become this vile, unchecked.

No matter what Hollywood or the mainstream news wants you to believe, men are not just born evil, vile, or misogynistic. They’re made that way by following the example of either absent, abusive, or resentful parents, or by having no good example to follow and thus turning to men placed in the limelight like Andrew Tate.

Who Even Is Andrew Tate?

Honestly, that should be a question everyone should be asking themselves. The fact that the public has given him so much attention should raise some questions, because it’s not like there aren’t dozens of horrible men and we don’t spend weeks keeping them in the news cycle.

To keep it brief, Andrew Tate was born in Washington D.C. and raised in the U.S. until his mother and father divorced, after which he was taken to England to live with his mother. He recounts this time in his life as one where he “became the man of the house” at just 11 years old.

Tate began practicing martial arts when he was about 19 in 2005, and then became a professional kickboxer for several years. He went on Big Brother (a British reality show) in 2016 but was booted off after a video was released wherein Tate is heard verbally abusing a woman and hitting her with a belt.

He capitalized on the rise of third-wave feminism around the mid and late-2010s and the emergence of its male counterpart, known as the “manosphere.” In response to ideas meant to “feminize” society (i.e. avoiding personal accountability, chalking up all problems to depression – according to Tate), he would go on to establish himself as a lifestyle guru and declared himself an example for men to follow, an antidote to the negativity and vitriol being given to men and a source of truth.

This culminated in the establishment of Hustler’s University, an online academy where men could pay $50 monthly for access to courses on how to gain financial knowledge, improve social standing, or get more women. Through paying for this program, men could unlock their true potential.

Tate’s webcam business grew to 75 women camming in four locations, with each giving him a cut.

Although Andrew Tate has hustled many men with his course subscriptions, it’s difficult to believe that all of that, plus his former kickboxing career, could lead to a supposedly self-reported $30 million net worth.

There’s the old adage, “sex sells.” Andrew Tate took that to heart. On the Fresh and Fit podcast, Tate described how he started a webcam business with a couple of girlfriends in London, and how that then grew to the point of having 75 women camming in four locations, with all of them giving him a cut of the money they made, to the tune of $600,000 a month.

Since growing this “empire,” Tate has flaunted his riches on social media, and has promoted himself with viral podcast clips promoting his self-proclaimed misogynistic attitudes and views, and his advice for men who wish to follow in his footsteps.

The Andrew Tate Effect

“As long as everything is consensual, what’s the issue?” supporters of him have asked.

The way he made his money is neither novel nor groundbreaking. Pimps have been around for as long as prostitutes have. But have they always been celebrated in mainstream culture?

One supposed teacher made a TikTok claiming that young boys were acting out because of the influence of Andrew Tate. Whether or not that’s actually true, it’s certain that many children go online unsupervised, watching all sorts of content that may be inappropriate or lead them to be in dangerous situations.

Here is a compilation of Andrew Tate talking about his camming business, and how he makes it enticing for women. Whether or not your son is aspiring to be like him, he still may be witnessing how a man, who’s supposed to be an “alpha” who’s rich, successful, and strong, completely belittles women. Take that, plus the modern wave of feminism increasingly treating men like they’re unimportant and replaceable at best, or like walking nuclear bombs at worst, is it really that unheard of that a young boy could see that example and say, “Hey, maybe he’s not wrong”?

What Can We Do?

We could sit and continue to unabashedly whine about men online and brand them all as trash. It’s certainly what a lot of women seem to do.

The thing is, there is no easy or overnight fix. A lot of damage has been done, after all. Men like Andrew Tate are only able to get away with their crass and demeaning messaging because feminists have been doing the same to them in reverse.

A better fix will take more time and dedication. Maybe even more than one generation. For too long, women have tolerated disrespect and objectification, and have accepted objectifying themselves in the name of “liberation” and “empowerment.” Many women have also completely bought into the belief that “men are trash,” and as such, attract trashy men who disrespect them, devalue romantic relationships, or just don’t care about them beyond the sex they’re used to readily acquiescing to.

Celebritizing lowlifes only validates them and reinforces the mainstream narrative that “men are trash.”

When it comes to teaching sons respect toward women, it’s often deferred to the father, who may be uninterested or absent altogether, or not an example of a respectful man. Or such education goes the ultra-feminist route (by way of his mother, teachers, or romantic partners), which either breeds resentment toward women or creates a man who will not stand his ground and be the sort of man who can guide and raise a family, much less serve as an example his son will want to follow.

Giving credence to men like Tate, whether as valid influences or the scum of the Earth, does more damage than good. Just like we shouldn’t celebritize serial killers, celebritizing lowlifes who do little to practice what they preach (Tate is hardly a poster boy for a life with traditional values) only validates them and reinforces the mainstream narrative that “men are trash.” Truly unfortunate when you stop and realize how many great men there are, and we spend no time talking about that because “tHeY’rE jUsT dOiNg tHe bEaR miNiMuM.”

Closing Thoughts

If we’re to have any hope of correcting that and mending relationships between men and women, then as women, we need to be deliberate with how we date and marry the men who will be our children’s fathers. They need to be a strong figure that sons can look up to so they don’t have to look to Andrew Tate, and they need to help raise daughters who will know what respect, kindness, and love look like so they don’t stay in relationships with manipulative assholes. And we also need to accept that we need to be more involved with our sons as they grow up; ask them about who they think is cool, who their friends look up to, their girl friends and girlfriends. Treat them like what they are: young boys who are growing up in a world that hates them, and who will need guidance, patience, and understanding from both their parents, lest they find that via some online hustler.

Love Evie? Sign up for our newsletter and get curated content weekly!