Voters Have an Unfavorable View of Andrew Tate, Want Him Suspended From Twitter
By Sabrina Jacobs
Controversial social media personality Andrew Tate recently made news when he was arrested in Romania on human trafficking charges. Tate is a self-described misogynist who built his platform by making racist, homophobic, and sexist comments. He has described women as “property” who belong to men and should stay in the home.
It shouldn’t come as a shock that Tate was especially frustrated when he was roasted on Twitter by climate activist Greta Thunberg. After Tate tweeted at Thunberg to “provide your email address so I can send a complete list of my car collection and their respective enormous emissions,” she responded with the fantastic “yes, please do enlighten me. email me at smalldickenergy@getalife.com.” Tate responded with an angry video message and shortly after, he was arrested by Romanian authorities with accusations of luring women and exploiting them for pornographic content.
A new poll by Data for Progress finds that while most voters are unfamiliar with Tate, those who are familiar view him unfavorably. Tate is viewed unfavorably by a -16-point margin, while Thunberg is viewed favorably by +3 points.
After a series of racist, homophobic, and sexist tweets, Tate’s Twitter account was suspended in 2017. However, after Elon Musk acquired Twitter in October 2022, he restored Tate’s account. Reactivation of his Twitter account allows Tate to spread appalling messages to his 4.5 million followers, including his view that rape survivors “bear some responsibility” for putting themselves in the position to be assaulted.
Data for Progress finds 66 percent of voters believe Tate’s Twitter account should have remained suspended, including 83 percent of Democrats, 62 percent of Independents, and 53 percent of Republicans.
In order to combat human trafficking, President Biden recently signed the Countering Human Trafficking Act. The act will increase funding and personnel for the Department of Homeland Security to identify and support human trafficking victims and hold human traffickers accountable.
Eighty-eight percent of voters support the Countering Human Trafficking Act, including 93 percent of Democrats, 89 percent of Independents, and 81 percent of Republicans.
It’s crucial that instead of giving a microphone to people like Andrew Tate, we put resources and funding into fighting for victims of human trafficking and assault. Tate’s dangerous rhetoric has spread to millions of followers, particularly young men, influencing them to believe that misogyny and violence against women are not only OK but normal. Tate has been allowed to get away with his crimes and the exploitation of women for far too long, and it’s time that he is held accountable.
Sabrina Jacobs (@bri_jacobs) is a digital fellow at Data for Progress.