Parents and teachers need to be aware that many boys are very defensive when it comes to the topic of Andrew Tate (Parents, talk to your sons about Andrew Tate – we teachers can’t take him on alone, 14 February). As a 17-year-old, I can see that my peers who support him often feel attacked if a teacher tries to engage them in a conversation about him.
Many boys see him as an icon. His ideas, while toxic, are seductive in their simplicity. He provides answers to insecure teenagers by telling his audience that if a man works hard and disregards the women in his life, he can become successful. If this worldview is challenged, boys may feel personally attacked. I have seen that many teachers who try to engage Tate supporters in conversation often make their students become more entrenched in their views, and it can seem to validate his references to the “matrix”.
