A New Hope
Photo by Austin Kehmeier
Florida and Texas seem to be the worst when we look across the political landscape and see what is happening to the LGBTQ+ community. It almost seems like these and a few others are in a contest to see who can come up with the harshest and most close-minded laws. And let us not forget about abortion rights either. But that is another matter for another day. Sometimes we are given a ray of hope to hang onto in these dark times. This is just such an instance.
Dwyane Wade is doing battle in South Florida. The former basketball star for the Miami Heat is not “balling” on the court this time. He recently received the Elevate Prize Foundation’s “Elevate Prize Catalyst Award” at the Make Good Famous Summit.
Wade explains why his family left Florida. “We’ve done so many great things here, so it wasn’t easy to leave. But the community wasn’t here for Zaya, so the community wasn’t here for us.” Wade’s daughter Zaya turns 17 soon. She came out as transgender in 2020. All of the anti-transgender legislation in Florida has caused many to flee the state. The Wade’s also as they left for California.
Wade said that Zaya was his inspiration for the creation of “Translatable”, a new online community designed to support transgender children and their families.
“The question was presented to her as, “if you have one thing that you want to see change in this community, what would it be?” “And for her, it goes right to the parents. It goes right to the adults. It goes right to us. It’s not the kids. It’s us. And so, she wanted to create a space that felt safe for parents and their kids. That’s what Translatable is, and it’s her baby.”
Wade hopes Translatable will provide a community to “support growth, mental health and well-being and that this space ignites more conversation leading to greater understanding and acceptance.”
“We understand that in this state that not everyone thinks the way some others think. 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.”
Alexander Roque, executive director, of the Ali Forney Center, which helps homeless LGBTQ+ youth. Translatable comes as a critical time for transgender youth. 500 pieces of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation introduced this year. Of this he says, “Not all bills turn into law, but they’re all acts of hate that affect our kids in very devastating ways. We know statistically that every time there’s an anti-LGBTQ2+ bill in the media, there’s a 400% increase in calls to suicide hotlines by young people.” If people would only realize that these are human beings that are put through these trials. These are analogous to crimes being committed against completely innocent people.
There has been so little help for the transgender community. Especially in Florida. This is a ray of sunshine in an overcast sky. If there is anyone you know who might need a shoulder for support or a friendly place to turn to in a time of need then please go to
Translatableproject.com.
