Dwyane Wade built a legendary legacy in Miami for his long and successful career with the Heat. The all-time great won four championships in Miami, and fans affectionately refer to the area as Wade County—a nod to the county’s name, Miami-Dade. But Wade revealed he could no longer live in the state of Florida.
He shared in a recent appearance on Headliners that he and his family no longer live in Florida because of the state’s policies and outlooks on transgender people. Wade’s daughter, Zaya, is transgender.
“That’s another reason why I don’t live in that state,” Wade told Rachel Nichols when discussing state legislators. “A lot of people don’t know that.”
Here's what Dwyane Wade said on Headliners when I asked him about anti-LGBTQ laws in Florida: "That's another reason why I don't live in that state. A lot of people don't know that...my family would not be accepted or feel comfortable there." pic.twitter.com/1ya0AevA1C
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) April 26, 2023
“I have to make decisions for my family,” he continued. “Not just personal, individual decisions. I mean, obviously, the taxes is great, having Wade County is great, but my family would not be accepted or feel comfortable there. So that’s one of the reasons why I don’t live there.”
Governor Ron DeSantis (R., Fla.) has continuously supported and pushed anti-LGBTQ legislation. Most recently, he did so April 19 when the House passed bills on gender-transition treatments, bathroom use and keeping children out of drag shows.
The state’s Board of Education approved a ban on classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades at the request of DeSantis, expanding a previous law banning that instruction up to third grade, per the Associated Press. It has been commonly referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” law by critics.
The House also passed a bill to make it a felony to provide gender-affirming health care to transgender minors—like Wade’s daughter.
