Roosh V, real name Daryush Valizadeh, has been hitting the headlines of late, so here’s everything you need to know about the so-called ‘pick up artist’.
He started out as a microbiologist, writing a blog called DC Bachelor in his spare time.
This is the blog that eventually became Roosh V.
The 36-year-old from Maryland, USA, has written quite a few books which he claims “contain simple but powerful techniques, moves and lines to offer a direct line to casual sex”.
The first book is named ‘Bang’, and features some questionable advice, including how to keep girls away from their friends and how to sleep with them “before doubt kicks in”.
He writes “when a girl makes the decision to have sex with you, you must quickly capitalise on her decision before any variables change”.
Nowadays, he has over 19,000 twitter followers and the same amount of registered forum members on Roosh V forums. He also has his own website called ‘Return of Kings’.
This controversial writer is not just sharing dating tips, however. He is firmly anti-feminist and believes that it is now MEN who are discriminated against.
In December 2014 he was the subject of a BBC documentary presented by Reggie Yates called ‘Men at War’.
In this documentary, Roosh V holds one of his meetings and tells men that “women and gays are seen as superior to straight men. Anything a woman or a gay person wants is theirs.
“All men are seen as rapists. You need to be taught not to rape by a feminist who is fat”.
Rape is a running theme for Roosh V and the Return of Kings website, which features articles such as ‘“Rape Culture” Was Manufactured To Wage An Unjust War Against Men’ and ‘The Reality Of False Rape Accusations Will Require You To Make A Change You May Not Like.’
His most controversial article to date is one titled ‘How To Stop Rape’. It is in this post that he writes “I thought about this problem and am sure I have the solution: make rape legal if done on private property.
“I propose that we make the violent taking of a woman not punishable by law when done off public grounds.”
He now claims that these comments were published as a “satirical thought experiment”.
Safe to say, this man is not received well by women, and certainly not by those who have been victim to sexual abuse, which he appears to so flippantly disregard.
His planned Glasgow meetings have now been cancelled after he received abuse on twitter. He made this statement on his website: "I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, especially since most of the meetups can not be made private in time.
"While I can’t stop men who want to continue meeting in private groups, there will be no official Return of Kings meetups.
"The listing page has been scrubbed of all locations. I apologize to all the supporters who are let down by my decision."
Read more: Pro-rape blogger Roosh V cancels Glasgow event amid fears for safety of supporters
Katie Pruszynski, who started the petition on Change.org to ban the events, said: "He encourages men to ignore when a woman says 'no', he believes rape inside private property should be legal and he routinely refers to women as 'the enemy'.
"He believes sexual gratification is a man's right, wilfully disregarding the issue of consent."
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