With his retirement from the NBA this past April, former Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade has a lot more time on his hands. And as a recent Instagram post confirms, he’s using some of that time to promote LGBTQ inclusion and raise money for community-based charities.
The three-time NBA champion took to social media this week to unveil a new Pride-themed T-shirt in partnership with his wife Gabrielle Union through the couple’s YnG DnA lifestyle brand. Wade and Union showed off the shirts on each other’s Instagram accounts, along with sons Zion and Zaire as well as nephew Dahveon Morris.
On the back of the shirt is a PRIDE acrostic bearing the message “Please Remain Inclusive & Dedicated 2 Equality.” In seven words, Wade’s family shirt manages to convey a tone of hope, good manners, and even a sense that it might have been co-written by Prince.
This is just the latest in a series of supportive gestures from Wade over the past year. Back in April, Zion Wade took part in Miami Beach Pride and his proud father shared Instagram pictures of the event while on the road with the Heat. Then in June, Wade spoke about his relationship with Zion to Variety and gave a Father-of-the-Year-esque quote regarding the message he wants to impart to his son:
“So, go be your amazing self and we’re going to sit back and just love you.”
As his latest gesture demonstrates, part of Zion’s amazing self is serving as a model for a message of civil rights. And Dwyane Wade is just as amazing for not only supporting that message but amplifying it. Fifty percent of the shirt’s profits will go to GLSEN and the Wades will be making a separate $50,000 contribution to the charity. The $35 tees can be purchased at the YnG DnA website.
In the past, Wade has shown a propensity for showing off his fashion raconteur side, rocking looks such as a head-to-toe red suit and floral Versace jacket. But his newest creation proves that the most fashionable look of all is the one that brings him closer to his son.
