Andrew Tate has the youth listening to him but is it a good thing? Photo Screenshot
International – Andrew Tate is one of the most searched men right now. For various reasons. His controversial opinions on what it means to be a man and how to make money has the internet divided. He has captivated the minds of many and since he became Muslim, many young Muslim men are giving him their attention, which has caused concern .
Ayman Nassar, Founder of Islamic Institute of America, works with the Muslim and non-Muslim youth of America. First and foremost, Nabi (SAW) should be our role model, however, there are things people are good at and we can benefit by following them, he explained.
“Tate has some strengths maybe in business, in coaching, in certain aspects but not necessarily in others. So we have to be selective of what we learn from each other knowing that no one is perfect and when we have doubts or questions about someone’s standards, we go back to the Messenger of Allah (SWT). We see how far or close that behaviour or standard is from the standard of the Prophet (SAW).”
The youngsters and their admiration of Tate
Many youngsters want to be like Tate and live his life. To have such a large following of the youth, Tate must be speaking about things that resonate with them. Abdel Malik Ali, Muslim leader from Oakland, believes it is the way Tate speaks about masculinity that has these young boys so captivated.
“These young boys and men are gravitating to Andrew Tate because he sounds masculine and he sounded like he was not giving in to this whole attack on masculinity. When I asked these young boys and these men why he was resonating with them, that’s what they were saying. They were identifying with his masculinity. To me, in observing them, it’s a condemnation of the trend to feminise masculinity and first when he talked about as I said when he talked about toxic masculinity.”
As Ali explained it, these young boys feel their masculinity is being attacked. Not just toxic masculinity but masculinity itself. This is why they are eager to listen and follow Tate. Many believe he is a stepping stone to what men should be like.
The issue lies in the way Tate speaks and what he says. Before accepting Islam, although his speech was misogynistic in many ways, it wasn’t attributed to Islam. Muhammad Bashir, a retired lawyer, explained that whatever Tate says now is being attributed to Islam even if Islam is against it.
“Here’s the issue though because he took shahada, we now have catapulted him, his message of hyper masculinity, which does exist even misogyny in many terms that does exist, as if it’s an Islamic precept that he’s pushing forward. It’s not.”
SMread: Preparing to fast with a chronic illness
How he is helping the youth
Many of those who follow Tate do so because he is filling a void within them, explained Nassar. They come from disadvantaged backgrounds and so, it is easy to make an impression on them. To give them an identity that they have been lacking and wanting.
“I think some young people are finding what I talked about appealing to them and it is helping them build an identity you know. An Islamic identity that I could say things I would have been worried about or shy to talk about at school. Talk about my faith or why I pray or why I fast or why I do this or why I don’t you don’t have a girlfriend. So I think it’s that mindset that is making the young people feel more connected to him.”
From Nassar’s point of view, there are a lot of good young people who can learn from Tate. However, they must still exercise caution. They must understand he does not speak for Islam, he hasn’t made mention that what he says is part of Islam.
“Every young Muslim needs to understand he’s not a role model in a spiritual perspective. He never claimed to be so but he claims to be a guy who knows how to make six digits pretty quickly. So if you want to learn how to make six digits pretty quickly sure go follow his videos. Learn from him. Take the good that he has right. Our role model in everything is the Prophet (SAW) … We really don’t need any other role models in anything but there are certain things we can learn from each other because we’re all experts in one area or another.”
To hear what Muhammad Bashir, Ayman Nassar and Abdel Malik Ali said regarding Tate and what he needs to change about himself, listen to the discussion here
