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Dwyane Wade has angrily denied his ex-wife’s claim he is profiting from their transgender daughter and pressuring her into changing sex, insisting in a lengthy Instagram statement today that he would ‘never’ force her into anything.
Wade, a former NBA star, is on vacation in Africa with his current wife Gabrielle Union to celebrate her 50th birthday.
The trip was abruptly interrupted yesterday with bombshell claims from his ex-wife, Siohvaughn Funches-Wade, who claimed in legal filings that he is pressuring their transgender 15-year-old Zaya into legally changing her name and sex because he stands to profit from it.
Zaya was born Zion but came out as trans in 2019 aged 12 and has since amassed modeling contracts and social media fame. Her father and stepmother have been vocal in their support of her and now consider themselves staunch LGBTQ advocates.
In his statement, Wade lashed out at the notion he was pushing the decision and also took aim at his ex, calling her an ‘absentee parent’ who was selfishly putting herself at the center of their daughter’s transition.
‘No one in our house would ever force Zaya or anything against their will. This isn’t a game for my family and definitely not for Zaya. This is her life.
Dwyane Wade with his transgender 15-year-old daughter Zaya. He denied claims he is forcing the child into transitioning, saying this is ‘her life’ and her choice
Zaya with Siohvaughn Funches-Wade, who fears her ex-husband is exploiting her for financial gain. She wants Zaya to wait until she is 18 before legally changing her gender from male to female
‘My wife and our village has been her rock in helping her pick up the pieces after heartbreak after heartbreak,’ he said.
He waged war on Siohvaughn, saying: ‘I will not sit on my hands and allow her to make a mockery of my dedication to my family. The high road has run out of real estate.
‘My lawyer will be in contact and best of luck to the 14th lawyer as they try to unravel this book of lies that’s been sold to them.’
Zaya has not commented publicly. Her father said she was in class when her mother’s allegations became public yesterday.
Wade won full custody of the child and her older brother Zaire in 2011 after a bitter and protracted divorce from their mother.
He and Siohvaughn had been childhood sweethearts, marrying and starting their family before he was drafted into the NBA.
He met Union in 2007, the same year he filed for divorce. Union has not responded to Zaya’s mother’s claims.
Siohvaughn is fighting to block the gender and name change, and wants Zaya to make the decision for herself once she is 18.
‘I have concerns that (Dwyane) may be pressuring our child to move forward with the name and gender change in order to capitalize on the financial opportunities that he has received from companies,’ she said in her legal filing.
It was a response to an August petition by Wade to allow Zaya to legally change her name from Zion Malachi Airamis Wade to Zaya Malachi Airamis Wade.
In his August filing, the former athlete claimed he had legal right to make decisions on his daughter’s behalf, and that he was only informing his ex-wife ‘as a courtesy’.
Wade obtained full custody of the boys when he divorced their mother in 2011. In a 2012 interview with MailOnline, the boys’ mother detailed her agony at losing them to her ex after a four year court battle.
She believes he was only awarded custody because of his money and fame.
‘I think influence had a lot to do with it. Celebrity had a lot to do with it. Money had a lot to do with it,’ she said at the time.
Wade fought bitterly for custody of the kids. During the divorce, Funches’ own attorneys cited her struggles with mental health.
Now, she says her ex-husband is ‘poised’ to profit from the transition.
She cited a conversation in April during which she claims Dwyane told her ‘that a lot of money had been already made and that additional money will be made in relation to our child’s name and gender issue.’
‘(Dwyane) told me that he intended to make our child very famous due to the name and gender issue and also informed me that there would be endorsements/contracts associated therewith,’ she claims.
‘I am concerned that our child is being commercialized at a young age and also of the uncontrollable consequences of media exposure i.e. cyberbullying, statements and/or pictures taken out of context of our child, and the unwanted spotlight focused on our child.’
The law is murky when it comes to divorced parents agreeing on and making decisions on behalf of their transgender children.
In her filing, Siohvaughn claims that Dwyane is legally required to consult her on ‘major decisions affecting care, welfare, activities, health, education and religious upbringing’.
But Dwyane says he is entitled to make the decision on Zaya’s behalf, regardless of her mother’s input.
Zaya was Zion (far right) until she came out aged 12. She is shown with older brother Zaire and mother Siohvaughn
Siohvaughn and Wade were legally married between 2002 and 2010. They also share older son Zaire, 20, but Wade won full custody of the boys in 2011 after a lengthy court battle
Since coming out as transgender aged 12, Zaya has won modeling contracts with brands like Tiffany. She is shown attending Paris Fashion Week last month
Zaya with older brother Zaire, stepmother Gabrielle Union, father Dwyane and half-sister, three-year-old Kaavia James
Wade has been supportive of Zaya’s transition since she came out to him in 2019. Above, one of his supportive Instagram remarks
A hearing has been set for December to determine whether Zaya can change her name and sex without her mother’s agreement.
Siohvaughn and Wade were married between 2002 and 2010. They also share older son Zaire, 20.
In her 2012 interview with MailOnline, she told how the pair had been childhood sweethearts when he was drafted to the NBA.
‘He was like nothing I see now. He was very humble, very shy,’ she said. She begged him not to enter the NBA.
‘We had just got married and had a child. I wanted time to settle, to build as a family. I asked him to choose between his family or him and he chose his family,’ she said.
The following year, he signed an $8.5million contract and became an overnight star.
She blames his rising star for the breakdown of their marriage.
Among Zaya’s new modeling jobs is a contract with Tiffany. She appeared in a recent campaign for the jewelry brand
Zaya and Union also took part in a Dove campaign earlier this year
Dwyane has spoken openly and frequently about his daughter’s transition and is now an LGBTQ advocate. He is shown on Ellen, describing how Zaya came out to the family
Wade met Union in 2007 while the pair co-hosted a Super Bowl party. He filed for divorce later that year.
Since 2019, Wade and Union have described how Zaya came out to them, and how they now know her as her ‘authentic self’.
‘Our (then) 12-year-old came home…and said, “Hey, I want to talk to you guys. I think going forward I’m ready to live my truth and I want to be referenced as she and her and I would love for you guys to call me Zaya,”‘ he told Ellen DeGeneres during an appearance on her show.
In a later interview with People, he said Zaya’s transition gave him ‘hope’.
He first spoke of her transition in 2019 on Matt Barnes’ podcast, All The Smoke.
‘I had to look myself in the mirror. When my son at the time was three years old and me and my wife start having conversations about us noticing that he wasn’t on the boy vibe that [older brother] Zaire was on.
‘I had to look myself in the mirror and say “what if your son comes home and tells you he’s gay?” What are you going to do?
‘You’re going to talk about strength and courage. My 12 year old has way more than I have. You can learn something from your kids. In our household, that’s all we talk about. We talk about making sure our kids be seen by each of us. We want them to be whoever they feel they can be in this world. That’s our goal.
‘I watched my son, from day one, become into who she now eventually has come into.
‘And for me, it’s all about: Nothing changes with my love. Nothing changes in my responsibilities. So, all I had to do now is get smarter, educate myself more. And that’s my job,’ he said.
