Former NBA all-star Dwyane Wade is now scoring points in bunches for the LGBT movement. He’s also getting PC points for his trans child Zaya and playing shutdown defender against the state legislatures trying to level the playing field for female athletes. SB Nation Outsports crowned him “America’s Dad” for taking on the “bigots” in Missouri and other states trying to keep boys out of girls’ sports.
Wade’s son Zaya realized he was a “girl” at the age of 3. At age 12, he came out as transgender, Reimer says. Papa Wade and his wife, actress Gabrielle Union, celebrate this very publicly. (See photo of all three above).
Outsports writer Alex Reimer says Wade’s LGBT advocacy on his huge social media platform is awesome to see. “On Tuesday, Wade offered his take on the wave of bigoted ‘anti-trans’ legislation that’s sweeping the nation.”
This week Wade rallied around Brandon Boulware, the Missouri dad of a trans student who’s opposing that state’s legislative efforts to even the playing field for girls. Wade posted Boulware’s speech on Instagram along with this message:
“I vote AGAINST this legislation! I don’t know Brandon Boulware at all but I do know we have something real in common. Here’s the one thing we can’t do ‘ SILENCE OUR CHILD’S SPIRIT’ Thank you for using your platform and sharing your family’s story! ‘Our kids are more than bedrooms, bathrooms and locker rooms.’ ”
They can, however, silence the spirit of girls who lose out to boys in athletic competition. Girls like Chelsea Mitchell, plaintiff in the Alliance Defending Freedom lawsuit against Connecticut’s trans-friendly policy. She was a frequent loser to Andraya Yearwood in the 100-meter dash. After finishing high school, Mitchell joined the track team at William & Mary. Elevated by national media support for transgenders, Yearwood got offers from Harvard, Army and Connecticut.
Boulware is an attorney who disputes the obvious advantages that males have over female athletes, and he urged Missouri lawmakers to defeat House Joint Resolution 53:
“I ask you, please don’t take that away from my daughter, or the countless others like her who are out there. Let them have their childhoods, let them be who they are. I ask you to vote against this legislation.”
Boulware’s testimony drew 7 million views on the American Civil Liberties Union’s Twitter account. He prioritized his own child’s happiness over the happiness of numerous female athletes victimized by the unfair competition.
Reimer says Wade is taking a “heartfelt stand against anti-trans laws,” and “the NBA legend continues to show what it means to be a straight ally.” And the female athletes and their parents are not taking heartfelt stands? Not according to Outsports.
In a previous SB Nation Outsports article, Cyd Zeigler had stated “Wade is America’s Dad for our time. If only some of the shameful legislators across this country possessed his empathy and grace.”
Wade also scored LGBT points by taking his family to a Miami Pride event two years ago and by acting as a pronoun cop. "America's Dad" refers to Zaya with she/her pronouns. “He’s been a vocal ally of the LGBTQ community every step of the way, including last summer, when he defended Zaya from atavistic Twitter trolls,” Reimer raved.
