The Washington Post has been ordered to rehire columnist Karen Attiah and provide her with back pay, according to a ruling by a private arbitrator. The decision came after Attiah was fired in September 2025 for comments she made on social media in the wake of the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
Arbitrator Sarah Miller Espinosa found that the Post did not have "good and sufficient cause" to terminate Attiah's employment and had violated the terms of her contract. Espinosa stated that "The Washington Post failed to establish the grievant engaged in gross misconduct."
The Post initially announced Attiah's termination the day after Kirk's assassination, citing a series of posts on her BlueSky account. One post suggested that "part of what keeps America so violent is the insistence that people perform care, empty goodness and absolution for white men who espouse hatred and violence." Another post stated that "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."
In a termination letter dated September 11, 2025, Post HR chief Wayne Connell informed Attiah that her public comments on social media regarding Kirk's death "harm the integrity" of the organization and could potentially endanger staff. Attiah was informed she had violated the publication's social media policies.
Attiah, 40, celebrated the arbitrator's ruling, stating that she hoped the decision would "send a message to journalists and media institutions everywhere that freedom of expression is always worth fighting for." She expressed her willingness to return to work at the Post and relief that her record was being set straight, calling the termination "wrongful."
Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, was fatally shot during a speaking engagement at Utah Valley University in Orem. He was 31. His alleged assassin is currently facing trial.
The assassination led to national division, with some commentators attributing his death to his "hateful words." Attiah had previously stated that her posts referred to "the state of gun violence in general."
In 2013, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos purchased The Washington Post with the stated intent of making it profitable. The newspaper reported losses exceeding $100 million in 2025. Bezos had implemented changes to the Post's Opinion Section prior to Attiah's termination, shifting its focus towards "personal liberties and free markets."