Answer to Andrew Tate’s idea of masculinity — 2 fighters and what they stood for

Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan are escorted by police officers outside the headquarters of the Bucharest Court of Appeal, in Bucharest, Romania, January 10, 2023. Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea via Reuters

Today’s young men are under crisis—professional and personal. They can’t find role models to emulate; no ‘Superior Men’ who can show them the light. Prove me wrong. Because if that weren’t the case, then Andrew Tate wouldn’t have become the phenomenon that he is.

One of the most Googled men in the world, the former kickboxing champion was recently detained in Romania after the Bucharest Court of Appeals approved his extradition to the United Kingdom. He is currently facing charges for alleged rape, human trafficking, and sexual exploitation of women.

But Tate’s followers swear by his lessons on machismo and antidotes to feelings of worthlessness and loneliness. On the contrary, his critics have all sorts of expletives for the infamous influencer.

I, though, have no inclination to take sides. Instead, I supplant in his place two men who serve as a beacon of hope to our frayed idea of masculinity —  Muhammad Ali and Khabib Nurmagomedov. Better ambassadors of the sport, they redefined the grammar of fighting and conducting themselves as men.

As a foil to the archetype portrayed by Tate, Ali, the “Greatest of All Time”, stormed the limits of achievement and transcended the sport of boxing itself. He was the great romantic hero who identified with the common people and had a spine. He refused to be drafted into the United States Army during the Vietnam War, after which he was stripped of his championship and banned from fighting for three and a half years. He returned and reclaimed the heavyweight title against overwhelming odds. Now that is the kind of inspiration that young men need to look at, rather look back to.

In 1981, Joe, an Afro-American Vietnam war veteran who suffered from PTSD, threatened to jump from the ninth floor of an office building. Ali drove his Rolls Royce on the wrong side of the street and darted straight into the building. “You’re my brother! I love you, and I couldn’t lie to you,” he said to the man, and a while later, they both exited the building, got into the Rolls Royce and went to the hospital. 

‘Tateverse’ so small and low

Tate and his ecosystem are now and present, ever prying on the insecurities of most modern men, many of them led down and left hopeless by our economy, society and politicians. Knowing about Ali and the masculinity he stood for will take you some reading up. But believe me, it will save you from the hollowness of Tateverse.

Tate is a master at using rhetoric to appeal to the pathos of his audience. His exuberant language hides his misogyny and he deflects the jab by often quoting motherhood as the supreme virtue of women. In Tate’s worldview, the woman has no role other than birthing children.

On the idea of motherhood and masculinity, allow me to cite another example. Nurmagomedov laid his gloves down after beating Justin Gaethje at UFC 254 in 2020. In his post-fight speech, wearing the papakha, still catching his breath, he said that his decision was taken to honour the promise he made to his mother after the death of his father.

‘Tateverse’ is so small and low it will never have space for great ideas that young men really need to look at. He is all over the internet. On the other hand, the true masculine stories need to be found and read. That’s a small cost to come out of Tate’s toxic masculinity.

‘Tateverse’ will never have great ideas that inspire generations of men to stand and struggle for their dreams and justice. His popularity also owes to the fact that it reinforces patriarchal ideas. On the other hand, true masculine stories—the likes of Ali’s and Nurmagomedov—need to be found and read. That’s a small cost to come out of Tate’s toxic masculinity.

Views are personal.

(Edited by Humra Laeeq)