Openly misogynist and sexist, Andrew Tate has built his popularity on social media on his "controversial" comments, which garner billions of views on TikTok. Why was he arrested finally? And how did Andrew Tate come to be the most searched name on Google in July this year, beating Kim Kardashian and Donald Trump? We break it down.
Who is Andrew Tate?
Andrew Tate is a British-American social media content creator and former professional kickboxer. He is the founder of Hustlers University, an online platform that teaches people how to "acquire wealth" through cryptocurrency and dropshipping. Hustlers University charges a monthly subscription fee and encourages members, many of whom are young boys and men, to bring in more members and receive a 48% commission on each person they introduce. In addition to this, Andrew and his brother Tristan started a webcam business that hires women to "sell fake sob stories" to men.
When did he first hit the headlines?
Tate appeared as a guest on the British reality show Big Brother in 2016 but was later evicted from the house after a video of him assaulting a woman with a belt went viral. Since then, he has garnered attention for his controversial views on women's rights, including stating that women should "bear some responsibility" in cases of rape and expressing the belief that "women belong at home" and should not be allowed to look at other men or go to clubs without his permission. These views have gained traction on the video-sharing platform TikTok, where videos featuring Tate's statements have received billions of views and spawned numerous copycat profiles. He has also tweeted that "depression isn't real."
Tate and social media platforms
In 2017, Tate was banned from Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube for his misogynistic and homophobic content. Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, stated that he was banned from these platforms "for violating policies classified under dangerous organizations and individuals."
However, when Elon Musk took over Twitter this year, he lifted the ban on Tate. There has been widespread criticism of TikTok for failing to ban Tate and his crony accounts, despite their clear violation of the platform's rules. TikTok has stated that they are currently investigating the issue.
How did the recent controversy with Greta Thunberg play out?
That brings us to this week, on December 27, Tate tweeted at Swedish teen climate activist Greta Thunberg, mentioning his 33 cars and offering to send her a list of them and their "enormous emissions." Thunberg, known for her humorous and pointed responses to criticism from world leaders, replied with "yes, please do enlighten me. email me at smalldickenergy@getalife.com." This exchange caught the attention of the internet, and on December 29, Tate released a two-minute video in response, in which he eats pizza (and declares that he won't recycle the boxes) and calls Thunberg a "slave of the matrix" who has been programmed to scare people into supporting the government's efforts to "tax them into poverty to stop the Sun from being hot." This video has received 14.5 million views on Twitter.
Why was Tate arrested?
This morning, on December 30, Tate, his brother, and two Romanian nationals were arrested by Romanian police on charges of human trafficking and rape. Tate had moved to Romania five years ago and, in a video, stated that about 40% of the reason for his move was due to the country's "lax rape laws." He said, "I am not a rapist, but I like the idea of just being able to do what I want. I like being free." Unverified reports suggest that the pizza that Tate ate in his video on December 29 may have given away his location to the authorities, as the chain that sold it is only found in Romania. Hours after his arrest, Thunberg tweeted, "this is what happens when you don’t recycle your pizza boxes."
