National Superhero Day: Marvel, DC and others celebrate real-life heroes fighting COVID-19 to save the world
Every year on April 28, the world celebrates National Superhero Day but in 2020, the day's festivities took a poignant turn. With the coronavirus pandemic still raging on, essential workers are risking their lives every day for our health and safety and some of the biggest publishers and comic book figures decide to use the occasion to celebrate these real-life heroes.
Created by Marvel back in 1995, National Superhero Day is usually a day when fans celebrate their favorite characters, but this year Marvel was one of many companies that decided to use the day to pay tribute to our real-life heroes instead. The company's official Twitter shared a powerful work of art by artist Mike Hawthorne and Edgar Delgado showing front-line workers striking superhero poses.
The late Stan Lee's Twitter account joined in, reminding fans of the visionary writer's philosophy that everyday people can be transformed into something greater. The post declared that "Of the many lessons Stan Lee imparted upon us, one of the most powerful was that superheroes come in all different forms - and they don't have to wear capes."
Other companies, not just from the comic book industries, also paid tribute to healthcare workers and other essential service providers across the globe. Howard Lee created a fantastic flipbook animation (shared by 9gag) re-imagining frontline caregivers and essential workers as famous superheroes, while DC Comics released two separate videos on their Twitter accounts thanking these heroes.
The Power Rangers, ESPN, and a host of others have also come out with tributes for these everyday heroes. Considering the sacrifice and the hardships that healthcare workers are forced to endure for the sake of everybody's safety, no amount of thanks could be enough but it is still pretty heartwarming to see these real-life heroes get their due.
As of April 15, more than 9,000 healthcare workers in the US have contracted the new coronavirus and 27 have died, according to the first preliminary nationwide analysis of how the COVID-19 pandemic is hitting front-line caretakers in the country. With the situation continuing to worsen these numbers are likely to rise and our healthcare workers need all the support they can get, whether it is through better policies or even a simple word of thanks.
