Amber Rose's Financial Advice To Women Includes Seducing Men To Get Money, & The Internet Is Letting Her Have It

Financial advice comes in many forms: Sometimes we learn about money from our parents, our grandparents, our siblings, or that CPA uncle we only talk to during tax season. Sometimes we learn about money from our teachers, our colleagues, or our friends. And other times we gain information through financial advisors, consultants, and moguls like Suze Orman and Amber Rose. Wait, what? Well, you better sit down, because model and actress Amber Rose is dishing financial advice in her new book, How To Be A Bad Bitch.

What exactly makes Rose an expert? Well, unlike other financial advisors, Rose does not have a business or accounting degree. She does not have clients or accounts or even a job in the industry. Instead, she has real-life experience, i.e. experience making bad financial decisions.

In a recent interview with TIME Rose explains:

I feel like I’m in a position to give advice to women because I’ve made all of these mistakes...one of the biggest financial mistakes that I ever made was making a lot of money—I wanna say I made $1 million in 2011—and I spent all of it. And then after that, I had to pay taxes, and I did not have money for the taxes, and I was like, ‘I cannot believe I did this.’ And I really had to start over.

Blowing through your money and working hard to get it back is one thing. It's aspiration and, hell, it’s admirable. But writing a book giving financial guidance to other women... well, I’m not so sure. Don’t get me wrong, Rose is offering some good advice. She says it’s important to think about your specific life goals, consider when (and if) you want to have a family, and find mentors who you can look up to while still following your own path. But some of her advice is questionable, at best:

As women, we’re fortunate enough to use our seductive skills in order to be able to get money from our significant others. I also talk about seduction in the book. A lot of women don’t know how to seduce a man. It is extremely easy once you get to that point, and you can get anything you want out of them. And I know it might sound messed up, but once you get to that point, it’s not using. It’s not using a man, it’s literally getting what you want by any means necessary.

...Um, oh boy. Twitter, help me out here.

Here’s the thing: Amber Rose has a unique perspective. She was a South Philadelphia stripper-turned-model/professional dancer seemingly overnight. She made money, made mistakes, and could help others learn from those mistakes. She could use this as a real opportunity to promote education, financial stability, and feminist ideals, but instead she a promoting sexist agenda — and a depreciating one. (I cannot tell you how many tweets regarding this matter referred to women as “hoes” or “sluts” or “greedy ass bitches.”) Could it be argued that using a man for his money is an act of empowerment? Absolutely. But that is an argument better left for another day, another article, and a better author than I. Because — to me — feminism is about women’s rights and women’s equality, and the key to equality isn’t going to be found in perpetuating beliefs already held by our still patriarchal society, the key to equality lies is disbelief —in shattering expectations and truly taking control.

So while I applaud Amber for her vulnerability and honesty, I think this misses the mark. Loose the misandry and then we can talk.

Image: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images