JOHOR BARU – Despite his recent arrest in Romania over human trafficking allegations, controversial British-American “male empowerment” influencer Andrew Tate enjoys significant popularity among men around the world, including Malaysia.
Towards the end of 2022, social media blew up with Tate’s arrest, which happened a mere day after he engaged in a viral Twitter spat with 20-year-old climate change activist Greta Thunberg.
Known for his controversial opinions on gender dynamics, Tate, who has over 4 million followers on Twitter alone, is a celebrated figure for some Malaysian men.
29-year-old corporate trainer Nor Aizuddin suggested that what he calls “radical feminism” and “hatred towards men” are among the reasons why Tate’s content has gained popularity locally.
“Feminism in Malaysia has somewhat grown into brainwashing young women into thinking that they’re programmed or designed to hate men.
“The truth is, feminism is mostly about fighting for rights and equality…it has nothing to do with degrading the opposite gender.
I think most of Tate’s ideologies oppose what most feminists believe in, and this has created a platform for him to garner attention among those who are subjected to hate and degradation that comes from radical feminists,” Aizuddin told The Vibes.
Citing Myron Gaines, another personality from what is known as the “manosphere” movement, Aizuddin suggests that influencers like him and Tate have capitalised on the situation to promote “male empowerment” ideologies.
However, Aizuddin also says not all of Tate’s opinions are healthy for men, pointing towards content where he has ridiculed female pilots and women’s ability to drive.
“Yes, the (women) driving part and the part about Tate not liking women pilots is something I don’t agree on.
“Then again, I don’t have to agree with everything he says.
“I just take the good ones that I can apply in my own life to be better,” Aizuddin added.
This way out of ‘The Matrix’
Meanwhile, for a 28-year-old supervisor who wanted to only be known as Faez, Tate’s purported conversion to Islam in October and his anti-LGBT rhetoric allowed him to gain a following locally.
When asked why he believes that Tate has as many haters as he does followers, Faez turned to one of Tate’s usual tropes.
“They feel it’s dangerous because most of them are still in the Matrix.”
“The Matrix” is a term used among male empowerment personalities to refer to what they believe is a controlled environment whereby people have to act or behave in ways that conform to roles pre-determined by “the elites”.
This belief – that Tate is helping men escape the so-called Matrix – is also among the reasons why Faez does not believe the criminal allegations against Tate.
Pointing towards Vice Media, which recently interviewed one of Tate’s alleged victims of human trafficking and rape, Faez labelled it instead as a “portal for degenerates”.
‘Messiah’
However, not all Malaysians share the same view as Tate’s supporters, with some expressing concern that even a conviction against the influencer would end up turning him into a messiah instead.
For 27-year-old Hafizul Jaffar, Tate’s ideologies are nothing more than misogynistic rhetoric, which is why he believes some men gravitate towards the latter’s content.
“Maybe some people in Malaysia are on the same wavelength as Tate's misogynistic ideals.
“Perhaps it’s also due to our misogynistic treatment towards women that they relate to this ideology,” Hafizul said.
Further, he said, to curb such views spreading among Malaysian men, schools and parents need to nurture boys from a young age to not treat women differently just because they are of a different gender.
Hafizul also added that sending Tate to prison for trafficking charges may not be enough to curb his message spreading among men.
“It will be the same, or even worse, after his detention for human trafficking charges.
“His supporters would think this is an unjust allegation towards Tate and believe that these allegations are a part of The Matrix,” Hafizul said.
Impossible to ‘sanitise’ Tate’s image despite religious conversion
Meanwhile, 28-year-old artist Vera (not her real name), came to know Tate after his religious conversion, which drew her concern, as she believes sexual abusers would sometimes misuse religion to gain sympathisers.
Further, pointing towards Tate’s supporters who claim only to take his good opinions and not the bad, Vera says there is nothing good to gain from the influencer, whose foundational values are based on demeaning women.
“What good is there to take? His foundational values are based on demeaning women…you cannot sanitise that.
“Any attempt to do so merely minimises the harm he does to women and girls.
“He doesn’t even attempt to make a change despite being called out for it multiple times,” Vera added. – The Vibes, January 15, 2023
