There are people in fandoms whose critical work on a topic is so well known and respected that everyone else in the fandom reads them and eagerly awaits their take on it. People defer to them for insight into the media that they love.
I was a fan of Steven Attewell’s writing before we met in person. I found his blog Race for the Iron Throne when I first began reading A Song of Ice and Fire and searched for what smart people on the Left had to say about it. I think we connected on his Tumblr. He had just moved to NYC after getting his doctorate in history. I invited him to hang out. I was surprised when he said yes!
I shouldn’t have been surprised. Because, day after day, for decades, Steven shared his insight about what he loves with others. Anyone could ask him a question on his Tumblr, and (provided they were not an asshat) they would get a thoughtful answer, drawn from his knowledge of everything from history, to politics, to labor organizing, to a million pieces of speculative fiction and films. He was endlessly generous with his time and was patient with EVERYONE.
It makes sense for him to have been that patient because he spent time organizing his fellow academic workers at UC Santa Barbara. Any successful union organizer (and he was a successful union organizer; rank and file no less!) has to be able to, not just talk to people, but LISTEN to them as well. Organizers must understand workers’ concerns and then explain to them why making the brave move of joining together with their coworkers is the thing that will make their lives better. Steven had that empathy, patience, and wisdom.
I love that everyone addressed him as “Maester Steven” on Tumblr. “Maester” is an honorific George R. R. Martin created for scholars and healers in his A Song of Ice and Fire series. That was apt for Steven. He was a voice of wisdom in fandom who was able to address complex realities with sensitivity.
His non-fandom book was: People Must Live by Work: Direct Job Creation in America, from FDR to Reagan. Worker justice was his mission. He brought class analysis and deep knowledge of economic systems and labor organizing to everything from Star Wars to The Venture Brothers. His series A People’s History of the Marvel Universe is giant in its scale. In it, he wove together real history and sprawling fictional worlds with great depth, and with unprecedented mastery. Who else would write Cap Saves Altamont or Anti-Mutant Prejudice and Mutant Rights in the Long Durée?!
When there were topics he wanted to write about that were outside of his immediate personal experience, he would go out of his way to make sure those perspectives and experiences were taken into account. Ordinarily, if a non-Romani person wrote about how Romani characters were used as placeholders for Jewish identities in comics I would have been worried that they would say something offensive, but Steven always did the homework and respected people. The result was a piece that everyone could admire.
Steven and I have been podcasting together for a decade with many episodes covering The X-Men and Captain America, as well as our whole series on The Venture Bros. The Venture Bros podcast was his idea. He saw that a lot of people who loved the show didn’t have the knowledge of history and pop culture to appreciate the layers of meaning of the show, and we felt like fans deserved to enjoy its full richness.
Sarah Daniel Rasher (the co-host of one of my other podcasts) said something incredibly poignant and apt about their last conversation with Steven: “He had so much more to discover and write and be excited about.”
Steven messaged me the day X-Men ‘97 went live to make sure I watched the show and suggested making time to podcast about it right away. I’m grateful we got to do that while we could. It is breaking my heart that we will not get to finish X-Men ‘97 together.
I’m struck by the fact that we are now without Steven and without his vlogging partner, Scott Erik Kauffman. Both died from cancer far too young. I sincerely hope we can protect their intellectual legacy.
On a more personal level, I’m sad we’ll never get to know what his TTRPG characters are going to do next. Or that we won’t be able to watch a movie and grab a bite outside together.
Finally, tell the critics and academics whose work you love how much it means to you. Fund their work! Fight for academic workers unions and public funding for public higher education (Steven was a professor at City University of NY). Watch or read something you love today and talk to a friend about it. That would make him happy.
To honor Steven, donations can be made to Emergency Workplace Organizing.
