At the Time 100 summit, retired NBA star Dwyane Wade opened up about his fear for his 15-year-old daughter, Zaya, amid anti-transgender legislation and urged lawmakers to “live a day in my world.”
He and his wife, Gabrielle Union, have both been outspoken about their daughter and have fought tirelessly for LBGTQ+ rights since Wade confirmed Zaya’s gender identity in 2020 while promoting his ESPN documentary, D. Wade: Life Unexpected. Speaking with CNN’s Poppy Harlow this week during the summit, Wade said the current political climate has them concerned for her safety.
“To me, it’s a joke. This is our life,” Wade told Harlow. “We live this. So when you’re out there making rules, and if you’re not experiencing this―if you’re not living this and you’re just out there signing away and making laws―that’s not right. That’s a joke.”
There are currently 25 bills related to prohibiting transgender youth from competing in sports, according to Freedom For All Americans. Just this week, Louisiana banned transgender women and girls from joining or competing on female sports teams.
He also alluded to Florida’s Parental Rights in Education, often referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” law, adding, “We’re not going to close the book on anyone being gay, bisexual, transgender―we can’t close the book on that.”
Speaking directly to lawmakers who support this legislation, he added, “Come and see how it is to walk through this world as her,” adding later, “As blessed as it is for my daughter to have parents who can support her, I’m still afraid every moment she leaves the house. And not just because of gun violence, but because of the way people perceive her in this world.”
In the past, he and Union have praised Zaya’s strength, adding that their goal as a family is to give her “the best opportunity to be her best self.” He’s also talked about her confidence in being able to come to them and tell them exactly who she is. “I went years without telling my chef that I don’t like cilantro on my burger—as an adult, it took me years to have the confidence to say that,” he said during his documentary. “My daughter, at eight years old, had the confidence to say ‘This is who I am. This is who I want to be.'”
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