Proud parent alert: Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union were practically bursting with joy on Tuesday after their daughter Zaya made her Paris Fashion Week debut. This appearance was huge for Zaya, who was just granted a legal name change and transition after coming out as transgender.
Zaya publicly came out as transgender in February 2020.
And last month, on February 24, the 15-year-old marked the end of an ongoing battle to legally change her name from the one that Dwyane and her mother, Siohvaughn Funches, gave her at birth. Siohvaughn was vehemently opposed to the change and tried to fight Dwyane and her daughter through the court system, but in the end, Zaya prevailed.
Siohvaughn went so far as to accuse Dwyane of exploiting Zaya for profit.
She went on to tell the court how her ex stood to make a pretty big paycheck by supporting their daughter's wishes to transition into a woman. Ultimately, however, the court sided with the teen and Zaya got her wish, as well as a major endorsement from fashion house Miu Miu, which hired her to walk in its fall/winter 2023 runway show in Paris, according to Page Six.
Zaya absolutely slayed on the catwalk.
The teen may have been making her first trek down the coveted runway, but she strutted her stuff just as well as the pros. And she wasn't the only famous face to walk in the event: Actress Mia Goth, singer Ethel Cain, and model and influencer Amelia Gray Hamlin also took part in Miu Miu's show.
Dwyane and Gabrielle shared their support on Instagram.
The pride was evident in Dwyane's posts, as he gushed over his daughter's big moment at Paris Fashion Week. According to Page Six, in a since-expired Instagram story he captioned one clip, "I'm not crying, you are," as Zaya walked the runway.
In another, he shared a montage from the event in which both he and Gabrielle looked visibly emotional while they watched Zaya work it.
This is hardly the last time we'll see Zaya basking in the spotlight.
She obviously has a bright future, both in the modeling business and as an activist. Between all of the hard work she put into getting her name changed and her identity recognized by the public at large and the way she's risen to the occasion of following her dreams as a model, it would appear that the sky's the limit for Zaya.
