Former NBA All-Star Dwyane Wade accused of exploiting trans daughter for money
The ex-wife of NBA All-Star Dwyane Wade accused him of exploiting and pressuring their trans daughter into changing her gender for financial gain.
Siohvaughn Funches-Wade, ex-wife of legendary NBA basketball player Dwyane Wade, accused the 13-time All-Star of exploiting Zaya, their 15-year-old transgender daughter, for financial gain. She has begged a court to intervene to prevent her from changing her name and gender on her birth certificate.
In court papers filed this week that were obtained by The Blast, Funches-Wade, the star’s first wife and mother of his two eldest children, asked a judge to impose an order that would prevent her daughter from legally changing her gender from male to female until she was 18 years old.
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Zaya, who was born Zion, came out as transgender in 2019 when she was just 12 years old. Since then, she’s won modeling contracts with brands like Tiffany, Dove and amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on social networks. According to her mother, she is also in talks for deals with Disney.
Zaya’s economic potential
However, Siohvaughn believes her child should wait until she is 18 years old to decide if she really wants to legally change her name and gender, and not be influenced by pressure from her father, who could want to take advantage of the great offers received from some important companies.
“I have concerns that [Wade] 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 his legal filing.
She also expressed concern that Zaya’s being marketed at a young age may receive a lot of media exposure that could result in cyberbullying and unwanted attention.
In August, the former athlete claimed that he had the legal right to make decisions on behalf of his daughter and that he was only informing his ex-wife “out of courtesy.”
Wade gained full custody of the children when he divorced their mother in 2011. In a 2012 interview with MailOnline, the children’s mother detailed her agony at losing them to her ex after a four-year court battle.