Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade have been very open about their allyship with the LGBTQ+ community. Their most recent act as allies was their move from Florida to California. It has come as Governor Ron Desantis continues to double down on several anti-LGBTQ laws in the state. The couple has now opened up about their move and how it has helped their family.
Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade’s Big Move
The couple appeared on the cover of Parents’ first-ever digital issue to talk all about the move.
“There are a lot of reasons we decided California was best for our family and finding a community for Zaya was a big part of that,” Wade said of his 16-year-old daughter, who is transgender.
Zaya came out in 2020 and has since been heavily supported by members of her family.
“We felt that California was a place that would allow her to blossom and grow. She’s going to be a Junior in high school now and she’s been able to be accepted and become her here,” he continued.
In 2022, Gov. Desantis signed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill into law for the state. The bill forbids instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade. In March of this year, Florida became the eighth state to restrict transition-related medical care for minors. Furthermore, in May, Florida also approved bills to ban diversity programs in colleges as well as prevent students and teachers from being required to use pronouns that don’t correspond to someone’s biological sex. These were more than enough reasons for the Union-Wade household to make the move.
“When you have the kind of rhetoric that is being espoused in Florida and adopted into law, that’s not an option if my child isn’t safe there,” Union said. “We have family and friends who don’t have the privilege of moving. So, we are going to be fighting till we are out of breath to protect all kids who are oppressed. That is our responsibility as people with large platforms and as people who folks trust, and they trust us because we say the hard thing.”