Thread by @JoeMulhall_

Thread: The @hopenothate campaign to reduce the harm caused by the misogynist influencer Andrew Tate has been really successful. He's already been removed by Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. But why did we feel he was dangerous enough to warrant deplatforming? (1)

We don't call for the deplatforming of figures lightly. We understand that social media is an important space for debate and disagreement. We only call for it when we think it's really important or a user, such as Andrew Tate, poses a serious danger. (2)

Tate is probably the most famous internet celebrity in the world right now. In recent weeks he has been Googled more often than the President of America, Donald Trump and major pop stars. As of this week, the #AndrewTate hashtag has over 12.7 billion views on TikTok. (3)

The major concern is that his brand of extreme and sometimes violent misogyny is reaching a young male audience and could have a really corrosive effect. His content is widely celebrated by his fans for having brought back “traditional masculinity”. (4)

However, what is less reported is his long history of extremism, including racism and homophobia and his close association with major far-right figures, most notably the anti-Muslim extremist Stephen Lennon [aka Tommy Robinson]. (5)

We know that misogyny can be a gateway to other extreme and discriminatory views, and there is a serious danger that some people, sucked in by his sexist content, will align with his wider far-right politics. See some evidence here: hopenothate.org.uk/2021/09/26/ant… (6)

For those who think this is "an attack on free speech", I've written at length about why deplatforming, when used sparingly, could actually have the opposite effect and increase the diversity of voices online. (7)

https://twitter.com/JoeMulhall_/status/1392767688452317184?s=20&t=_k_ceP5PBWyRnxYIGwYrvw

For all the detailed evidence of the dangerous things Tate has said and done have a look at the full briefing we have put together and sent to all the major Tech Platforms. (8)

hopenothate.org.uk/2022/08/19/act…

It's great news that Facebook, Instagram and Twitter have already acted but be sure to sign our petition calling on @tiktok_uk and @YouTube to act as well!

act.hopenothate.org.uk/page/111641/pe… (End)