Bucharest, Romania – Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan were released from house arrest in Romania on Aug. 4, but charges against the US-British siblings – founding a human trafficking group and sexually assaulting several women – are still hanging over their heads.
Recent journalistic research has exposed the links between the brothers and the Romanian mafia.
And late last month, chat room messages analyzed by the BBC revealed evidence that dozens of women had been groomed into online sex work by members of Andrew Tate’s circle.
Widely accused of misogyny, an accusation they enjoy, the brothers have amassed a significant online following based on their controversial internet personalities.
Now they await their trial in Romania, the Eastern European country where they built a house near the capital Bucharest.
The Tates reportedly chose to live in Romania, believing it to be a country where laws are loosely enforced.
In a 2022 podcast, Andrew Tate said, “I like Eastern Europe as a whole because corruption is much more accessible… I find it offensive that a police officer in England will stop me and refuse to take a bribe.”
The Tates have influenced boys and men worldwide. In Romania, too, some have been affected by their disturbing ideologies about masculinity.
Ion, a 17-year-old aspiring basketball player, accused the media of inciting people against Tate.
“They are lying,” he told Al Jazeera, “just like they did with climate change and LGBTQ issues. The media benefits from this, from the division they create among us, from turning against each other.”
Marius, a 16-year-old boy from Bucharest who is homeschooled, says Tate has had a positive effect on him.
“He may be found guilty or not, but his influence continues to grow,” he told Al Jazeera.
Marius and Ion have been reviewing content from the Tates for the past year and both said they believe there is a difference between a person’s online personality and their real selves.
Ion said he felt inspired by Andrew Tate, but “doesn’t care what he does or doesn’t do in real life”.
“I care and I listen to what he says online, I watch his videos, I get them on my feed and I find them relevant to our time, to our crappy world, where you can be denied if you simply mislabel something or misname someone,” he said.
Marius claimed “[Andrew Tate] motivated me to go to the gym, start exercising, stop complaining and be more proactive in my life. I used to follow him more rigorously, cared more about his opinion, but now I take only what is useful for myself and leave everything else behind”.
“[I felt] lost, with no clear direction, but with the help of his videos I was able to learn.”
But comments like this worry Raul Lupas, a clinical psychologist in Bucharest.
While fitness campaigns can be helpful, Andrew Tate’s message “evokes a lot of self-righteousness, creating a belief that ‘the end justifies the means’.”
“Andrew Tate is even more powerful because he promises something very desirable with the minimum amount of effort required. This approach does not rely on a concrete understanding of the world and does not promote understanding or learning, but rather a quick way for someone without a clearly defined identity to develop a sense of belonging.”
Raised in Luton, a town north of London, Andrew Tate, the much more influential brother, is a formal professional kickboxer whose online commentary resonates with millions of users – mostly men. He propagates the idea that being rich means being free, and often films himself in lavish locations, smoking a cigar or boarding a private jet.
Ion says his eyes have been opened to “The Matrix,” a conspiracy theory touted by Andrew Tate that says the world is not what it seems because dark forces are at play to control people.
Ion described The Matrix as “the 9 to 5 grind, that desolate existence that forces one to work for pennies for the rest of their lives with no chance of getting free.”
The Tates claim they have cracked The Matrix’s code; Marius said escape is possible, “and Andrew Tate can be a guide on this path.”
When asked what they think about masculinity, Marius and Ion said that “taking care of the family” was important, emphasizing the need to be strong. Neither of them talked about emotions, the need to empathize, love or care for those around you.
As Ion said, echoing sentiments regularly shared by Tate, “It’s a crappy world, I’m alone in it and I walk alone”.
“He’s right when he talks about men having to take care of women because women simply don’t have the physical strength that men have,” Ion said, arguing that “women should be the ones who should spend more time with the kids . at a young age, because we, the men, simply don’t have the patience for that. There is a deeper connection between the mother and the child and we, men, lack the ability to take care of ourselves in that way.”
Despite Tate’s arguably negative influence, Lupas says there is one bright spot: that there are “many examples of positive masculinity” appearing in the media.
“There are men who come forward, talk about their experiences and promote an alternative to the dominant, unemotional, withdrawn and aggressive man,” he said.
