Father-daughter connection! Dwyane Wade has been outspoken about how proud he is of his daughter Zaya’s growth through the years.
The professional basketball team announced in February 2020 that Zaya was transgender. “First of all, me and my wife, Gabrielle Union, we are proud parents of a child in the LGBTQ+ community, and we’re proud allies as well,” Wade said on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, adding, “We take our roles and our responsibilities as parents very seriously.”
At the time, the athlete noted that it was the couple’s “job as parents to listen” to their children and to “give them the best information that we can, the best feedback that we can. And that doesn’t change because sexuality is now involved in it.”
Wade welcomed Zaire, his son, in 2002, and Zaya, his daughter in 2007. Siohvaughn Funches. In 2013, the ex-NBA player became a dad for his son Xavier. Aja Metoyer. After they tied the knot with Union, Kaavia was born via a surrogate on November 2018.
The actress has also been candid about learning more about Zaya’s gender identity. “It’s watching the love handle the hate that has been encouraging,” the We’re Going to Need More WineAuthor told VarietyMay 2020. “We’re just loving and accepting our kids, which is not revolutionary. To some people it’s nuts. For those people who have spoken out so publicly against our family … I’m not standing on my own. The cavalry is arriving, and they are unafraid to stand in their truth and not be compromising when we look at right and wrong.”
Wade praised his child for being honest about her life ahead of Pride 2022. “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 to CNNAt the time. “My daughter, at 8 years old, had the confidence to say, ‘This is who I am. This is who I want to be.’”
The Illinois native praised his child’s interest in helping the LGBTQIA+ community that same month. “My family, we’re not celebrating [Pride]. Zaya made it quite clear that she [doesn’t]Pride is something you should celebrate. I think every day for her, having a loving, supportive community around her is her celebratory moment,” he exclusively told Us Weekly.
Wade added: “But the biggest thing is my daughter said, ‘We want to be able to help other families.’ So throughout our foundations, we try to make sure we are helping the LGBTQIA+ community. That’s how we celebrate.”
Scroll down for Wade’s most meaningful quotes about his bond with Zaya: