Introducing Zaya!
On Tuesday, Gabrielle Union shared a series of heartwarming tweets, raving over her husband Dwyane Wade‘s daughter Zaya.
“Meet Zaya. She’s compassionate, loving, whip smart and we are so proud of her,” Union, 47, wrote alongside a video of Zaya, who can be heard stressing the importance of being “true to yourself.”
“It’s ok to listen to, love & respect your children exactly as they are. Love and light good people,” Union added.
In the clip, Zaya is seen driving in a golf car alongside Wade, explaining, “I would say, just be true to yourself — what’s the point of being on this earth if you’re going to try and be someone you’re not… be true and don’t really care what the stereotypical way of being you is.”
“Even when people are being mean, and when people are getting hurt because they’re trying to be themselves and even through that you still want people to live their truth?” Wade asks his daughter.
“I know it can get tough, but I think you push through and be the best you. It’s become more accepting. … Even through hard times you gotta push through, it’s very worth it. When you can look in the mirror and say ‘hi’ to yourself,” Zaya adds.
In a different tweet, Union thanked the many people who have supporter Zaya and the Wade family.
“Huge huge huge THANK YOU to everyone who’s dms I slid into, friends & family who provided information, resources, love & encouragement. We are humble LGBTQ+ allies with ALOT to learn & grateful for all the support. We encourage y’all to check us needed! Again, thank you!” Union wrote.
Union’s sweet posts come after Wade sat down with Ellen DeGeneres on her talk show and opened up about the moment Zaya came out to him and Union.
“First of all, I think it’s what every parent should be is what you’re being right now,” DeGeneres told him. “Which is unconditionally loving your child and supporting your child in whoever they are.”
“Me and my wife Gabrielle Union are proud parents of a child in the LGBTQ+ community,” Wade, 38, said. “And we are proud allies as well. We take our roles and our responsibility as parents very seriously. So when our child comes home with a question, when a child comes home with an issue, when a child comes home with anything, it’s our job as parents to listen to that, to give them the best information that we can, to give them the best feedback that we can — and that doesn’t change because sexuality is now involved in it.”
The athlete continued, revealing that his child had decided to go by the new name of Zaya and be referred to by she/her pronouns.
“So once Zaya, our 12-year-old, came home — first Zion, I don’t know if everyone knows, originally named Zion, born as a boy — came home and said, ‘Hey, I want to talk to you guys. I think going forward I’m ready to live my truth. I want to be referenced as she and her, I would love for you guys to call me Zaya,’” Wade shared.
“So internally, it’s now our job to go out and get information, to reach out to every relationship that we have — my wife reached out to everybody on the cast of Pose — we’re just trying to figure out as much information as we can to make sure that we give our child the best opportunity to be her best self,” he continued.
RELATED: Dwyane Wade Proudly Opens Up About Watching His ‘Son Become Into Who She Now’ Is
Wade — who is also dad to Kaavia James, 15 months, Xavier Zechariah, 6, and Zaire Blessing Dwyane, 18, as well as the guardian of nephew Dahveon Morris, 18 — also shared that he was proud of Zaya and her role as “a leader.”
“Once Zaya came home and said, ‘I want you to call me Zaya and I’m ready to take on this,’ I looked at her and said, ‘You are a leader. And this is our opportunity to allow you to be a voice,’” Wade added to DeGeneres.
Source: Read Full Article