Dear Gossips,
Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade were the recipients of the President’s Award at the NAACP Image Awards on Saturday night. During their moment, Dwyane dedicated most of his speech to daughter, Zaya, thanking her for teaching him to broaden his perspective, be more empathetic, and how to use his platform to stand alongside those for whom equality is still not a reality. He shared his admiration for her for being herself, no matter the challenges and obstacles, and he publicly expressed that as a parent, his responsibility is to help facilitate a path for her to continue to live as she is, as who she is.
Building on that, Gabrielle used her time at the podium to ask the question:
“Will we fight for some…or will we fight for ALL of our people?”
Full video of the Wades’ acceptance speech is below. It’s only five minutes but worth every second. And while Gabrielle and Dwyane were speaking to their community, we can all learn something from their example, because the essence of their message applies to every fight for justice – it requires intersectional awareness and participation.
I personally have had the great honour of being able to spend time with families that include children who feel seen and understood and who have been given the space to embrace their identities, identities that don’t necessarily conform with archaic gender expectations. It’s been profoundly transformative to observe the joy and the kindness that can be shared in our communities when acceptance is so readily available. That’s not to say that everything is perfect, that the potential for harm isn’t there, that it’s like this in every community. But what’s really encouraging is how much they can teach us, and I mean the ones who are coming up behind us, about how to listen and welcome and discover and grow and not be afraid.
It is exactly as Dwayne says about what Zaya has taught him about what it means to love.
Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union’s powerful full speeches at the #NAACPImageAwards
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) February 26, 2023
“Even as we demand equality at the top of our lungs, we consistently fail to extend our advocacy to protect some of our most vulnerable.â€
pic.twitter.com/8ZzvR2dWfR
Yours in gossip,
Lainey