Karen Attiah Won, Anti-Fascist Spider-Man Rocks Racist in Minneapolis and More 'Good News'

As August winds down, apparently some superheroes were just winding up. And not all of them wear capes, but one of them was Spider-Man.

The other was journalist Karen Attiah. Both struck blows against tyranny in very different ways. For Spider-Man, it was punching, then tussling with notorious right-wing provocateur and Jan. 6 "activist" Jack Lang during one of his offensive "Please pay attention to me" rallies in Minneapolis this past weekend. For Attiah, it was the arbitrator siding with her in her unlawful firing case against The Washington Post, giving her the win against the once-great publication. They must now compensate her with back pay and reinstate her in her old role.

From the New York Times:

Sarah Miller Espinosa, the arbitrator, said in a written decision Thursday that The Post “did not have good and sufficient cause” to terminate Ms. Attiah and “violated” its labor agreement, according to a copy of the decision shared with The New York Times by Ms. Attiah’s lawyers.

“The Washington Post failed to establish the grievant engaged in gross misconduct,” Ms. Espinosa wrote.

In a statement, Ms. Attiah said that she hoped the decision “sends a message to journalists and media institutions everywhere that freedom of expression is always worth fighting for.” She said that she was “willing to go back” to her work at The Post, which she called “one of the world’s most storied newspapers.”

“This decision confirms what we’ve said from the start: I was doing my job as an opinion writer, and this was wrongful termination,” she said, adding that she was “relieved to finally have that record set straight.”

Attiah celebrated her win online, posting:

Some news. I WON. 💪🏾💪🏾 After wrongfully firing me last year, an independent arbitrator has ordered the @washingtonpost to reinstate me immediately, with back pay. It’s been a year-long fight, but this is a victory for journalists everywhere. More to come soon. ✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾

Attiah is right. This victory is for journalists everywhere. We don't have to lie down and accept the complete dismantling and destruction of our industry. We can advocate for ourselves. We can push back. We can fight. And Attiah is showing the way.

The Post, which abandoned a lot of its principles in owner Jeff Bezos' push to appease a press-hating president, unlawfully fired Attiah after her social media posts about the killing of white nationalist Charlie Kirk. The arbitrator found that Attiah, an opinion columnist, did not violate The Washington Post's policies for simply giving her opinion about this murder.

She originally posted on BlueSky, per the NYT: “Refusing to tear my clothes and smear ashes on my face in performative mourning for a white man that espoused violence is … not the same as violence."

No. Lies. Detected.

Congratulations to Attiah for standing up to those who tried to silence her. They tried to bury her, but didn't know this martial arts-loving, writerly diva was a seed.

Keep growing, girl.

Spider-Man Rocks Racist!

Now, I don't know why they keep messing with Minneapolis. Prince's hometown is basically the Wu-Tang Clan of cities—nuttin' to fuck with—as they have not only some very tough, good people willing to throw down against tyranny. They have their very own Spider-Man.

And he's Black.

Arrested alongside Lang after jumping up to administer a beatdown, Spider-Man was captured by multiple photographers and journalists covering the march, but photojournalist Chris Junh got the money shot of the spandex-rocking hero with his fist balled up and ready to dispense justice.

He was later arrested and identified not as Miles Morales or Peter Parker, but as 33-year-old Twin Cities resident William Nicholas Love by the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Two GoFundMes are circulating for his legal fees, with one raising almost $70,000.

Spider-Man gave this statement to one of the GoFundMes about his treatment by the Minneapolis police, who originally revealed his identity after publishing his arrest and mug shot:

(R)acist supremacists invaded our streets and threatened the peace of our community. I tried to block their trucks’ path with a police barricade, but police removed it and let them through. As the vehicle moved toward the crowd, I jumped onto the moving truck because I felt I had to do whatever I could to protect the people around me. I was pushed off, punched in the face, and trampled by police who, in that moment, protected the real threat instead of the community.

After I was already off the truck and on the sidelines, about five police officers came from behind, tackled me onto the concrete with full force, and took me into custody without reading my rights.

I am now injured and unable to perform, and this has affected both my health and my future. I’m raising funds to help cover my medical bills, support my recovery and any issues this may cause in the time ahead.

As my identity has been revealed, I now have to protect my family and assure our safety. I did what I felt I had to do to protect my community. Please consider helping in any way you can. Every donation, share, and message of support means so much to me and will make a real difference in my life as I work to recover from this trauma and keep fighting for whats RIGHT.

As of Monday, the same GoFundMe posted that Spider-Man is getting pro bono legal counsel thanks to all the attention and will now be using those funds to cover medical bills, support his recovery, and ensure the safety of him and his family as he's become a target for fighting Lang, who has made a name for himself by throwing offensive "rallies" to sowing discord, traumatizing people, and encouraging violence.

I'm starting to wonder, though, if every region has their own Miles Morales. Back in June 2022, I met Harlem's very own friendly neighborhood Spider-Man milly-rocking outside of BLVD Bistro on Frederick Douglass. He was wearing loafers and had impeccable rhythm.

May he always milly rock on any block.

And finally, one last bit of Good News ...

A Little DEI Never Hurt Nobody

And it definitely never hurt any corporation's bottom line.

Buried in the constant onslaught of news out of the White House was a report in beleaguered and Bari Weiss-besieged CBS News that companies that held on to their diversity principles suffered no financial consequences.

Like, none.

The companies that stuck with their DEI efforts had no difference in abnormal returns from those that eliminated their programs, the analysis found. The researchers also studied the effects on revenue to gauge whether consumers supported or expressed a backlash against corporations over their DEI efforts, finding no detectable differences.

The findings suggest that "U.S. firms have a lot of leeway" to resist pressure to cut such programs, Grumbach said. 

And ...

Despite the controversies, Americans broadly remain supportive of the benefits of diversity, with about six in 10 saying they believe businesses with a diverse workforce are both more profitable and innovative, according to a 2025 poll from Gallup and Bentley University.

Diversity only helps companies. Some diversity definitely could have prevented this latest debacle at Target with a minstrely Halloween costume. But maybe we shouldn't try to save Target, as she don't wanna be saved. The retail giant was one of the first major companies to bail on diversity after the latest occupant in the White House put a target (no pun intended) on the backs of any company embracing diversity, equity, and inclusion. I don't shop there, and haven't since they bailed on their already performative Pride Month efforts post-pandemic.

Cue "Hit 'Em Up" if you want to know my true feelings about the actions of any company as a staff, label, or mutha-effin' crew that dumps DEI. For me and about 600,000 Black women, it's on for life.

Got some 'Good News' to share? Don't keep it to yourself! Let The Snob know, and she might feature it in this column!