Volvo Group plans to lay off as many as 800 workers at three U.S. facilities over the next three months due to market uncertainty and demand concerns in the face of President Donald Trump’s tariffs, a spokesperson said on Friday.
Volvo Group North America said in a statement it has told employees it plans to lay off 550-800 people at its Mack Trucks site in Macungie, Pennsylvania, and two Volvo Group facilities in Dublin, Virginia, and Hagerstown, Maryland.
The company, part of Sweden’s AB Volvo, employs nearly 20,000 people in North America, according to its website.
Trump has upended the global trading system that has been in place for over 75 years with a plan for tariffs on products from across the world. His vacillating trade policy has undermined consumer and business confidence, and caused economists to raise their forecasts for a U.S. recession.
Volvo Group’s lay-offs are the latest response from a car and truck industry that is reeling from the Republican president’s tariffs on certain parts, which is expected to increase the cost of manufacturing vehicles.
“Heavy-duty truck orders continue to be negatively affected by market uncertainty about freight rates and demand, possible regulatory changes, and the impact of tariffs,” a spokesperson for Volvo Group North America said in an emailed statement.
“We regret having to take this action, but we need to align production with reduced demand for our vehicles.”
Chris Prentice, Reuters
Cambodia and China have signed a $1.2 billion deal to finance an ambitious canal project that aims to boost trade efficiency by linking a branch of the Mekong River near Phnom Penh to a port on the Gulf of Thailand, the Cambodian government agency heading the project announced Friday.
The deal to fund the Funan Techo Canal was signed Thursday during the state visit to Cambodia of Chinese President Xi Jinping, the agency said in a news release. Xi returned home Friday after a three-nation Southeast Asian tour that also included Vietnam and Malaysia.
Construction of the 151.6-kilometer (94-mile) canal began last year but was halted shortly after the Aug. 5 groundbreaking ceremony for reasons that were not made clear. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet said at the time that the canal will be built no matter what the cost, emphasizing that the project promotes national prestige, the territorial integrity and the development of Cambodia.
Described as a public-private partnership contract, the deal was signed by Deputy Prime Minister Sun Chanthol on behalf of Cambodias government, and by Ieng Sunly of the Funan Techo Coastal-Inland Waterways Company Ltd., the private sector partner. The project is being developed on a build-operate-transfer basis, with Cambodian investors holding a 51% stake, and Chinese investors holding 49%.
The canal will create a new inland waterway-maritime corridor capable of handling vessels up to 3,000 deadweight tons, according to Fridays announcement. It will encompass canal excavation and the construction of ship locks, navigation and logistics infrastructure.
As an inland waterway and important transport infrastructure in Cambodia, the FTC Project will become a new engine driving national economic growth,” said Wang Tongzhou, chairman of China Communications Construction Company, in the announcement. He added that “after completion, it will significantly reduce the comprehensive logistics costs in Cambodia, and promote Cambodias industry to the middle-to-high end of the value chain.
China Communications Construction Company is the parent company of China Road and Bridge Corporation, the contractor for the project’s construction from the Bassac River to the coastal province of Kep. The massive state-owned firm has faced scrutiny for its alleged involvement in financial scandals. It is also blacklisted by the United States for its role in helping the Chinese military construct and militarize artificial islands in the South China Sea.
According to Friday’s announcement, the canal is expected to create “up to 50,000 direct and indirect jobs in Cambodia.
Critics have raised concerns that the canal could severely disrupt the Mekong Rivers natural flood patterns. These disruptions could lead to worsening droughts and a reduction in the nutrient-rich silt essential for Vietnams vital rice production in the Mekong Delta, a region that sustains millions and is a major global rice exporter.
The signing announcement, however, stated that, A rigorous Environmental Impact Assessment, conducted by 48 specialists, confirmed minimal environmental impact.
It added that the Cambodian government has led efforts to minimize resettlement with a route designed to avoid dense communities and cultural sites” and that “a responsible compensation and consultation process is underway.
Sopheng Cheang, Associated Press
If youve been thinking about skipping that Target run this weekend, you’re not alone. A grassroots group called The Peoples Union USA is asking shoppers to sit out spending money at major retailers, restaurants, and banks from midnight on Good Friday through Easter Sunday.
No shopping, no spending, no fueling the corporate machine that has been bleeding us dry, organizer John Schwarz said in a video posted to Instagram.
The goal? Hit big brands where it hurtstheir bottom line. The boycott follows weeks of frustration over corporate DEI rollbacks and rising political tension, especially with companies such as Target, which has been the focus of a separate 40-day boycott led by faith leaders during Lent.
As a result of its DEI policy changes, Target has been the target of a boycott organized by faith leaders for the last 40 days, coinciding with Lent.
On January 24, Target announced that it was getting rid of policies concerning hiring goals for minority employees, an executive committee focused on racial justice, and other changes to its diversity initiative.
According to a report from Numerator, more than one in 10 customers surveyed on April 16 plan to participate in the boycott, though this move is less well-known than the widespread “economic blackout” that took place on February 28.
Furthermore, not all participants are planning to fully stop their spending for the weekend, though many plan on avoiding large corporations, including the brands Target, Walmart, Amazon, McDonalds, and Starbucks. Half of all participants are shifting their dollars to local, small businesses instead.
Users on X and Bluesky sounded off, reposting The Peoples Unions post and reminding users to take stock of what matters.
Money anxiety is on everyones mind this week between taxes and tariffs, the CataLIST posted. Take back control by consciously choosing how and where you spend your money.
This Blackout is the second widespread boycott organized by The Peoples Union. The first occurred on February 28, and the same report from Numerator said that although sales and trips were down across retailers, Amazon, Target, and Walmart saw declines beyond standard weekly variation. Black and LGBTQ+ consumers showed the most significant participation in the February 28 blackout.
Many of these boycotts cite brands DEI pullbacks and policy changes at the behest of the new administration. Though blackouts and boycotts already have scheduled dates in the future, Target is attempting to fix its relationship with its consumer base as the 40-day “Lent” spending fast comes to a close.
On April 17, Target CEO Brian Cornell met with Rev. Al Sharpton, head of the civil rights organization National Action Network, to discuss DEI and racial justice. Sharpton called the meeting constructive and candid, and plans to meet with some members of the National Action Network board of directors to determine next steps with Target.
Whether or not the boycott makes a measurable dent in sales this weekend, organizers say its about more than just the moneyits about sending a message.
The pending merger between Capital One and Discover Financial services received approval from several regulators Friday, bringing the $35 billion tie-up closer to completion.
The Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency signed off on the deal, which was first announced in February 2024.
The Federal Reserve Board said it entered into a consent order with Discover and assessed a fine of $100 million for overcharging certain interchange fees from 2007 through 2023. Discover has since terminated these practices and is repaying those fees to affected customers, according to the Federal Reserve. The boards action is being taken in coordination with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
It said Capital One has committed that it will comply with the Boards action against Discover of Riverwoods, Illinois, including remediation requirement, as a condition of approval.
The OCC said its approval reflects its careful analysis of the effect of the merger on communities, the banking industry, and the U.S. financial system.
Capital One, based in McLean, Virginia, said it expects to complete the acquisition on May 18 now that it’s received all required regulatory approvals. Shareholders of both companies approved the deal i n February.
The deal joins two of the largest credit card companies that arent banks first, like JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup, with the notable exception of American Express. It also brings together two companies whose customers are largely similar: often Americans who are looking for cash back or modest travel rewards, compared to the premium credit cards dominated by AmEx, Citi and Chase.
It also will give Discovers payment network a major credit card partner in a way that could make the payment network a major competitor once again. The U.S. credit card industry is dominated by the Visa-Mastercard duopoly with AmEx being a distant third place and Discover an even more distant fourth place.
President Donald Trump’s attempt to fire nearly everyone at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was paused on Friday by a federal judge, who said she was deeply concerned about the plan.
The decision leaves in limbo a bureau created after the Great Recession to safeguard against fraud, abuse and deceptive practices. Trump administration officials argue that it has overstepped its authority and should have a more limited mission.
On Thursday, the administration officials moved to fire roughly 1,500 people, leaving around 200 employees, through a reduction in force that would dramatically downsize the bureau.
U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said she was worried the layoffs would violate her earlier order stopping the Republican administration from shutting down the CFPB. She’s been considering a lawsuit filed by an employee union that wants to preserve the bureau.
Jackson scheduled a hearing on April 28 to hear testimony from officials who worked on the reduction in force, or RIF.
Im willing to resolve it quickly, but Im not going to let this RIF go forward until I have, she said.
It’s the latest example of how Trump’s plans have faced legal hurdles as he works to reshape the federal government, saying its rife with fraud, waste and abuse. Other layoffs and policies have been subjected to stop-and-go litigation and court orders.
The CFPB has long frustrated businesses with its oversight and investigations, and Trump adviser Elon Musk made it a top target of his Department of Government Efficiency.
Mark Paoletta, the CFPB’s chief legal officer, wrote in a court declaration that “the bureau’s activities have pushed well beyond the limits of the law,” including what he described as intrusive and wasteful fishing expeditions.
He said officials have spent weeks developing a much more limited vision for enforcement and supervision activities with a smaller, more efficient operation.
Some of the CFPB’s responsibilities are required by law but would have only one person assigned to them under the Trump administration’s plan.
The enforcement division is slated to be cut from 248 to 50 employees. The supervision division faces an even deeper reduction, from 487 to 50, plus a relocation from Washington to the Southeastern region.
Before Fridays hearing, attorneys for the National Treasury Employees Union filed a sworn statement from a CFPB employee identified only by the pseudonym Alex Doe. The employee said Gavin Kliger, a member of DOGE, was managing the agencys RIF team charged with sending layoff notices.
He kept the team up for 36 hours straight to ensure that the notices would go out yesterday, the employee said. Gavin was screaming at people he did not believe were working fast enough to ensure they could go out on this compressed timeline, calling them incompetent.
The bureaus chief operating officer, Adam Martinez, told the judge that he believes Kliger is an Office of Personnel Management employee detailed to the CFPB and doesnt work directly for DOGE.
Jackson said she will require Kliger to attend and possibly testify at the April 28 hearing. She said she wants to know why he was there and what we was doing.
Were not going to decide what happened until we know what happened, Jackson said.
The pseudonymous employee said team members raised concerns that the bureau had to conduct a particularized assessment before it could implement an RIF. Paoletta told them to ignore those concerns and move forward with mass firings, adding that leadership would assume the risk, the employee stated.
White House officials did not immediately respond to questions about the judge’s decision or the employee’s court declaration.
Michael Kunzelman and Chris Megerian, Associated Press
Some wealthy Americans are fleeing the United Stateswith their money, at the very least.
The uncertainty wrought by President Donald Trumps second term in office has benefitted Swiss banks, as theres been an uptick in the number of Americans seeking to open banking and investment accounts in recent months, according to reporting by CNBC and The Financial Times. Swiss banks have a long reputation for offering strong financial stability, asset protection, and client confidentiality.
While the recent wave of account openings is notable, its a familiar phenomenon: Past periods of turmoil in the U.S. have also seen Americans taking their money to Switzerland. The interest now is comparable to the 2007-2008 financial crisis, a wealth management advisor told The Financial Times last month.
It comes in waves, Pierre Gabris, CEO of Alpen Partners International, a Swiss financial consulting firm, told CNBC in a piece published Friday. When [former President Barack Obama] was elected we saw a big wave. Then Covid was another wave. Now tariffs are causing a new wave.
DIVERSIFYING BEYOND THE DOLLAR
While the specific motivation for moving money may differ, a common theme is currency diversification. The value of the U.S. dollar has weakened relative to other major currencies this year, falling more than 8% this year and reached a three-year low on Friday.
Many Americans are realizing that 100% of their portfolio is in U.S. dollars so theyre thinking, Maybe I should diversify, Gabris told CNBC.
A lot of inquiries about moving assets to Swiss banks have come from Americans who have more international backgrounds, such as Israeli or Indian roots, Gabris told The Financial Times. Many are driven by fear.
BANKING IN SWITZERLAND
While there are fairly straightforward ways for U.S. citizens living in Switzerland to open accounts, according to information from the U.S. Embassy in Switzerland and Lichtenstein, navigating this process from abroad is a bit more complex, albeit legal.
Opening an account in Switzerland probably does require a guiding hand to ensure compliance with U.S. regulations that are aimed at ensuring Americans dont evade taxes thanks to the secrecy of banking rules elsewhere.
That said, Swiss financial institutions have become more comfortable covering U.S. customers in recent years after dealing with tax issues that had cost Swiss banks billions of dollars in fines, the head of a small U.S.-based wealth-management business told The Financial Times.
There’s a lot to say about the White House’s new COVID-19 webpage. Before we get into it, here’s what happened.
The Trump administration has replaced COVID.gov (which is now unavailable), the federal government’s main source of information about the coronavirus, redirecting it to a revamped new page on whitehouse.gov called “Lab Leak: The True Origins of COVID,” which is riddled with misleading and conspiratorial claims about the coronavirus, asserting that the virus leaking from a lab in Wuhan, China, is the “most likely” origin.
It’s a theory that emerged in the early days of the pandemic and has been repeatedly disputed by health experts. (A team of WHO-appointed scientists flew to Wuhan in early 2021 to investigate the source of the pandemic concluded the lab-leak theory was “extremely unlikely.”)
The original website, launched under Biden, promoted information about the coronavirus vaccine, treatment, and testing. The new one rewrites the historic timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic, the role Democrats played in it, along withyou guessed itthe role of the media, which it also blames for discrediting its lab leak theory.
The Proximal Origin of SARS-CoV-2 publication which was used repeatedly by public health officials and the media to discredit the lab leak theory was prompted by Dr. Fauci to push the preferred narrative that COVID-19 originated naturally,” the site reads.
“This administration prioritizes transparency over all else,” a senior administration official told Fox News Digital. “The American people deserve to know the truth about the Covid pandemic and we will always find ways to reach communities with that message.”
Old grudges resurface
The site blames the Biden administration, and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in particular (which now faces a massive overhaul, including staff layoffs, as DOGE slashes its budgets and staff), for engaging “in a multi-year campaign of delay, confusion, and non-responsiveness in an attempt to obstruct the Select Subcommittees investigation and hide evidence that could incriminate or embarrass senior public health officials.”
It also takes a swipe at former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci, claiming that he misled the public with his recommendation that Americans keep “6 feet apart” and use masksboth of which were credited with helping to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
Instead, it argues “there was no conclusive evidence that masks effectively protected Americans from COVID-19.”
The site also insinuates that former President Joe Biden pardoned Fauci for how he handled the pandemic. (Biden has said that he issued preemptive pardons for Fauci and a host of others, as a guard against potential “revenge” from Trump in his second term.)
Finally, a lot has been said about the White House website’s dramatic bold redesign, and this page is no exception. On social media, users are making fun of the layout and font of the page, which looks both imposing and flashy, and unusual for a sitting president.
When it comes to electric vehicles in the U.S., California is by far the largest market: It accounts for nearly a third of the country’s EV sales. And for years, Tesla dominated this market, making up a majority of those sales. But thats changed: Teslas share of EV sales in California fell below 50% in the first quarter of 2025even as sales of other EVs increased.
In the first quarter of 2024, registrations for new Tesla vehicles made up 55.5% of Californias EV market. But in the first quarter of 2025, it fell to 43.9%, according to data from the California New Car Dealers Association (CNCDA). At the same time, registrations for all other EV models increased by 35%. Overall, zero emissions vehicle sales rose 7.3% in California between January and March.
Still, no other companies are close to competing with Tesla when it comes to EV models. But they have seen their share increase slightly. The second highest market share went to Ford, with 6%up 1.5% from the first quarter in 2024followed by BMW, with 5.6% (up .7% year over year) and then Hyundai, with 5.4% (up 1.1% year over year).
When it comes to the top selling battery electric and plug-in hybrid models in 2025, Tesla still took the number one and two spots with its Model Y and Model 3. There have been more than 23,000 Model Ys sold in California so far this year, and nearly 14,000 Model 3s. Hyundai took the third and fourth spots with its Prologue and Ioniq 5, but those sales were much lowerabout 4,400 and 3,700, respectively. Fords Mustang Mach-E took the number five spot, with 3,600 new sales.
Tesla backlash is affecting sales everywhere
Telsa once held an even bigger share of Californias EV market. In 2023, it accounted for 60% of EV sales, and in 2022, 71%. Part of that decline is likely due to the increase in EV offerings from other brands. But Teslas shrinking sales in California, especially this year, are also a sign of the companys overall slide away from EV dominancea trend fueled in part by CEO Elon Musks involvement in the Trump administration. An aging product lineup and backlash against Elon Musks political initiatives are likely key factors for the decline in Tesla BEV market share, the CNCDA wrote in its report.
Along with the political backlash, Tesla dealt with manufacturing disruptions this year that led to downtime at its assembly plants globally.
Across Europe, Tesla has already sold 42.6% fewer cars this year, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Associationeven though, once again, overall EV sales are up. Sales of Teslas China-made EVs also plunged 49.2% in February alone, compared to the year prior. (Teslas sold in the U.S. are made in California and Texas, though they still include some parts from abroad; Tesla does have a factory in Germany to sell in Europe, though it also exports cars from China.)
Teslas stock price has also crashed, falling more than 40% since the start of the year. In one day alone at the beginning of April, the company lost 15% of its value.
For years, Tesla was the dominant brand associated with electric vehicles, but thats clearly changing. Other car companies are still building up their EV offerings, and even bringing them statesideHyundai recently opened a $7 billion manufacturing plant in Georgia to build electric and hybrid vehicles here.
When it comes to overall car sales, though, the Trump administration’s tariffs on auto imports have muddled the years outlook. In March and April, customers flocked to buy cars before the tariffs kicked in, but its not yet clear if those tariffs will lead to higher vehicle prices, and by how much. California itself expects new vehicle registrations to fall 2.3% this year compared to last, because of U.S. trade policies.
If you thought youd heard the last of the viral Apple dance, think again. The TikToker behind it is now suing Roblox over its unauthorized use.
Last year, during the height of Brat summer, Roblox partnered with singer Charli XCX to feature her music and likeness in an in-game concert within “Dress to Impress,” a fashion game on the platform. In a lawsuit filed last week in Los Angeles, Kelley Heyerthe creator of the dance set to Charli XCXs hit songalleges that Roblox used her choreography in the update before finalizing negotiations to officially license the dance, as first reported by Polygon.
Heyer first posted the Apple dance on June 15, 2024, and submitted a copyright application on August 30. That was after Roblox reached out to her about licensing the dance as an emote for players to purchase. Roblox added the dance emote, an in-game action used to express a characters personality, in mid-August to coincide with the update. According to the lawsuit, Heyer expressed her willingness to license the dance on August 12, but alleges that Roblox has refused to finalize a license agreement and that she has received no compensation for the use of her choreography.
Roblox removed the emote from the game in November 2024but not before it was sold over 60,000 times, earning an estimated $123,000 from the copyrighted work, per the lawsuit. Heyer hasnt seen any of that revenue, and since the dance is entirely separate from the Charli XCX song, shes suing to claim her share (Charli XCX is not named in the lawsuit).
Roblox moved forward using Kelleys IP without a signed agreement, attorney Miki Anzai said in a statement to Polygon. Kelley is an independent creator who should be compensated fairly for her work and we saw no other option than to file suit to prove that. We remain willing and open to settle and hope to come to a peaceful agreement.
Roblox has since responded. A spokesperson told Polygon: “As a platform powered by a community of creators, Roblox takes the protection of intellectual property very seriously and is committed to protecting intellectual property rights of independent developers and creators to brands and artists both on and off the platform.”
They continued: Roblox is confident in its position and the propriety of its dealings in this matter and looks forward to responding in court.
Superman was born Kryptonian, raised Methodist, and sketched into existence by two Jewish teens in 1930s Cleveland. Faith and morality are his DNA.
There are no overt religious references in Superman comics. But over eight decades, hes been viewed as a divine entity, a savior figurehis sacrifice Christlike, his will to lead as strong as Moses parting the Red Sea, and his compassion akin to a bodhisattva, an enlightened being who guides Buddhists on the spiritual path.
While scholars, comic book writers, and fans alike are struck by the religious undertones in Superman comics, they say what separates Superman from the ever-growing pack of superheroes is his singular ability to bring hope in a hopeless world.
James Gunn’s Superman sparks conversation
As fans celebrate Superman Day on Friday, marking the 87th anniversary of the original superheros birth, they are also eagerly anticipating James Gunns film Superman set for release on July 11. This version starring David Corenswet, the first Jewish actor to play Superman in a major film, promises a return to a version of a vulnerable Man of Steel who is rooted in values espoused by most faithsgoodness, compassion, and hope.
The film has sparked a conversation about the place of Superman in the world and his personal code of ethics after several recent depictions of superheroes as antiheroes. Corenswet said in a recent interview to Fandango that what captivates him about Superman is how he chooses to see good in people and not dwell on the negative.
Why think about all the terrible things when we can focus on the good things we did today? he said.
In the same interview, Gunn said his Superman will reinforce the characters core value of preserving life at any cost.
He believes that the sanctity of life is of the utmost importance, Gunn said, noting the contrast with Supermans archnemesis Lex Luthor, who values scientific advancement over life.
Symbol of hope and positive masculinity
It was precisely this benevolent, hopeful version of Superman that inspired Robert Revington, who teaches at the Vancouver School of Theology at the University of British Columbia, to go skydiving in a Superman costume on his 28th birthday. And yet Revington, a Christian, balks at Christlike portrayals of his favorite superhero.
I like Superman and I like Jesus, he said. I dont necessarily want to conflate the two. To me, the best depiction of Superman is as a symbol of hope.
Revington also sees Supermans relevance today as an example of positive masculinity.
Hes this version of strong, but compassionate masculinity, which several prominent figures dont necessarily embody, he said.
Revington and many others beloved iteration of Superman appeared in All-Star Superman, a 12-issue series published by DC Comics between 2005 and 2008. The superhero saves a young person who is about to take their own life with the endearing message: You are stronger than you think you are.
Grant Morrison, who wrote those comics, has said his view of Superman was shaped by Giovanni Pico della Mirandolas Oration On The Dignity of Man, which argues that humans ought to be more virtuous than angels.
Superman speaks to our better angels
Humans, Morrison said in a 2008 interview, become what they imitate, which is why he made Superman an inspirational character.
We live in the stories we tell ourselves, he told Newsarama, a comic book website, and can choose to be the astronaut or the gangster. The superhero or the super villain. The angel or the devil. Its entirely up to us.
As a result, said Matthew Brake, founder and editor of Pop Culture and Theology, Superman is an idea that can inspire us to be our best selves.
Supermans character is also shaped by his upbringing as a Kansas farm boy, raised by kindly parentsJonathan and Martha Kent. They are portrayed as Methodists in the comics.
Superheroes, in recent decades, have received less-than-flattering treatment. In The Boys, a comic book turned Amazon Prime series, the Superman-like character, Homelander, is a government-sponsored hero whose smiling exterior conceals the heart of a sadist.
Invincible, a comic turned television series from Robert Kincaid, author of the Walking Dead, features Omni-man, a Superman-like character who turns out to be an alien invader bent on conquest. The main character, Invincible, is Omni-mans son, and must choose between protecting the Earth or taking his fathers side.
Dune, the famed sci-fi book adapted into blockbuster movies, warns of superheroes’ frailty
Heroes are painful, superheroes are a catastrophe, Dune‘s author Frank Herbert once wrote. The mistakes of superheroes involve too many of us in disaster.
A relatable superhero
But Superman has cemented his place in pop culture not just as a beacon of hope, but also as a character relatable to many, regardless of race or ethnicity.
Gene Luen Yang, who has written several Superman comics, is best known for his 2020 graphic novel Superman Smashes the Klan, a story about a Chinese American family moving to Metropolis in 1946 and facing discrimination from the Klan. The story follows the Lee family as they confront the white supremacist group with Supermans help.
Yang sees his own experience as a Chinese American mirrored in Supermans story.
The idea that you have to hide who you are or that youre caught in between cultures, he said. Superman has two namesKal-El, his Kryptonian name and Clark Kent, his American name. I had a Chinese name at home and an American name in school. So even though Im a practicing Catholic, I was more drawn to his Jewish roots because thats where I could relate more.
Yang sees Superman as the original superhero who inspired almost religious fervor in the geekdom, featuring cosplayers who reenact scenes as a Christian might reenact biblical episodes around Christmas or Easter. A trip to a comic convention is like a pilgrimage where followers collect original art and all kinds of relics.
Stories in pop culture also draw from older storytelling traditions, often rooted in religions.
In some ways, you can think of religions as communities that are built around stories that last centuries, Yang said. The idea of self-sacrifice, the idea that you do good deeds without the desire to gain recognition. Thats the whole point of secret identities.
While his Catholic faith is an important facet of his life, Yang said he never forced religion into his Superman comics.
I write more about my life and my lived experience of faith, with the doubts and the ragged edges, he said.
Characters like Superman, while not themselves religious, provide a portal to the sacred through the profane, said A. David Lewis, a Boston-based graphic novelist and comic book writer.
I love that people take something from popular culture and find some level of spirituality or find a greater connection to some divine source through it, he said. But I would never say Superman is just of the Jewish or Christian people. Like some of the best narratives out there, Superman gives us access to something transcendent.
Superman’s strong Jewish roots
Samantha Baskind, professor of art history at Cleveland State University, is Jewish; she sees numerous parallels between Supermans story and the history of Jews. Supermans solitary flight from Krypton in a little spacecraft is reminiscent of how Moses mother placed him in a papyrus basket and left him on the Nile, seeing it has his best chance of survival.
Some also compare Superman’s backstory to the Kindertransport, she said, referring to a rescue program that transported nearly 10,000 children, mostly Jewish, from Nazi-controlled territories to Great Britain in 1938 and 1939.
In Supermans Kryptonian name, Kal-El, chosen by his original Jewish creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the El in Hebrew connotes God. In DC Comics, Superman also frequents the Bottle City of Kandor, a Kryptonian city shrunk down and placed in a bottle, representing a fragmented piece of Kryptons history. Baskind said to her it is reminiscent of how diaspora Jews visit Israel.
Theres also the thinking that Siegel and Shuster created Superman because they were these two, skinny, young Jewish men who couldnt go out and fight Hitler, but Superman fought Nazis on the cover of their comic books, she said. In some early editions, Superman held Hitler by his Nazi uniform as he begged for mercy.
Appeal to the religiously unaffiliated
Despite the religious undertones, Supermans appeal to those growing religiously unaffiliated remains strong, said Dan Clanton, professor of religious studies at Doane University in Nebraska. He says its because Supermans story truly encapsulates American civil religion.
This idea that there are practices and beliefs that provide all, regardless of religious identity, with a sense of being part of something bigger than themselves, he said.
Neal Bailey, a contributor for over a decade to Superman Homepage and an atheist, believes Superman at his best is a philosophical pragmatist solving the most complex problems with the least amount of harm.
He actually goes beyond religion to see our commonalities, he said. Superman wouldnt care about people’s religious beliefs. He would care more about whether they are living up to their human potential.
___
Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Deepa Bharath of The Associated Press and Bob Smietana of Religion News Service
