Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan Tate — far-right influencers, former kickboxing champions, self-described misogynists, and men who are facing multiple charges of rape, human trafficking, and sexual assault — are suing Meta and TikTok for banning their social media accounts in 2022.
Andrew Tate was originally banned from Meta for violating its policies "on dangerous organizations and individuals," the company told the Guardian by email in 2022. TikTok and other social media platforms banned him for similar reasons.
"Misogyny is a hateful ideology that is not tolerated on TikTok," a TikTok spokesperson told NPR at the time. "Our investigation into this content is ongoing, as we continue to remove violative accounts and videos, and pursue measures to strengthen our enforcement, including our detection models, against this type of content."
The brothers were also banned from X but were later reinstated after Elon Musk acquired the company. Andrew Tate currently has 10.7 million followers on the platform, while Tristan has 3.4 million.
Before the bans in 2022, they had millions of followers on TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram as well.
Last week, they filed two lawsuits in the Los Angeles County Superior Court accusing TikTok and Meta of defaming and unlawfully "deplatforming" them, according to NBC News. The Hill reported that the suit alleges a "coordinated campaign to suppress, silence, and destroy the reputations and livelihoods" of the brothers. They're seeking more than $50 million in damages from both companies, NBC News reported.
"This campaign was carried out not merely by private actors, but in concert with government officials, media operatives, and ideological pressure groups — thus transforming Meta into a state actor for purposes of constitutional liability," the filing stated, according to The Hill. Their suit against TikTok used similar language.
Meta and TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Mashable.
The lawsuits don't mention YouTube, but the brothers were also banned there in 2022.
