1 of 2 | Elevate Prize Foundation CEO Carolina García Jayaram (L) and Founder Joseph Deitch (R) present NBA Hall of Famer and entrepreneur Dwyane Wade with the Elevate Prize Catalyst Award at the Make Good Famous Summit on Miami Beach. Photo courtesy Elevate Prize Foundation
May 24 (UPI) — NBA Hall of Famer Dwayne Wade and his daughter Zaya Wade on Thursday announced the launch of a digital resource for transgender youth and their supporters.
The father-daughter duo introduced Translatable as a “resource hub for parents, families and support systems of the LBGTQIA+ youth” according to an introductory clip on Instagram.
“For our family, we were blessed to have a community of supporters, and knowledgeable experts who could swiftly arm us with the tools we needed to support Zaya and her journey … I’m so very proud of the daughter I’ve had the opportunity to raise,” Wade said in the clip. “She has been my biggest educator and inspiration and what it means to be true to you.”
The Elevate Prize Foundation on Thursday also honored Wade with the Elevate Prize Catalyst Award for his transgender advocacy work.
Wade accepted the award during the foundation’s second annual Make Good Famous Summit.
The award recognizes “prominent individuals who use their influence to inspire social action,” according to a release from the foundation.
Wade said he plans to invest the $250,000 prize money into Translatable, adding that the program’s goal is to “support growth, mental health and well-being, and that this space ignites more conversations leading to greater understanding and acceptance.”
Elevate Prize Foundation CEO Carolina García Jayaram praised Wade for launching Translatable in Florida, a state that has introduced a series of bills targeting transgender people.
“Dwyane’s tireless dedication to the trans community and racial justice has illuminated the path toward a more inclusive future,” she said.
“Moreover, we commend his decision to announce Translatable in Florida — a place where many might feel a sense of exclusion.”
Wade moved his family out of Florida for safety reasons.
“We understand that in this state that not everyone thinks the way some others think,” Wade said. “Like most things in life, once you get to know them, you have more ability to be understanding. And so if you don’t want to know them, then you stay ignorant in a sense.”
Zaya Wade, who turns 17 on May 29, came out as transgender in 2020 at age 12. Dwayne Wade at the time said he and his wife, Gabrielle Union, are “proud parents of a child in the LGBTQ+ community.”
“When our child comes home with a question, when our child comes home with an issue, when our child comes home with anything, it’s our job as parents to listen to that, to give them the best information that we can, the best feedback that we can,” Wade said in 2020. “And that doesn’t change because sexuality is now involved in it.”
Zaya Wade’s transition was, however, met with widespread criticism online and from her own mother, Siohvaughn Funches.
Funches, who was married to Wade from 2007 to 2010 and shares his two eldest children, Zaya and Zaire, tried several times to prevent Wade from having Zaya’s name and gender legally changed.
She also claimed Wade and Union had been taking advantage of their transgender daughter for financial gain, which Wade had denied.
Wade retired from the NBA in April 2019 after playing for the Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers.