All About Laughs
Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade have been praised as model parents for the way they are raising their children. The blended family has seen their share of publicity as well as trying moments keep the family bond strong with love at the center. Holidays are undoubtedly a grand time in the Wade household, and on one particular holiday, the retired NBA player will not allow a certain man to take credit for the joy that is spread that day: Santa Claus.
Union had the pleasure of interviewing her friend Tamron Hall for OprahMag.com where the two discussed a few topics such as motherhood in the 40s. The two got to catch up a little bit, discussing Hall’s newborn, before getting into it.
Gabrielle asks Hall about her parenting experiences, and from there explains that her husband is not a fan of telling their children that Santa Claus is the reasoning behind their Christmas gifts.
“Do you ever feel like your experiences inform your parenting differently than it might other parents?” she asks Tamron. “Like, I’ll say to my husband, ‘Let’s tell the kids their Christmas gifts are from Santa.’ And my husband is like, ‘There’s no way in hell I’m letting these kids think that old white man is sneaking into our house and doing anything for them.’ Because he didn’t grow up believing in Santa Claus. And we have these conversations when it comes to raising our children about where to draw the line between fantasy and ‘Hey, that’s not how life works.’”
Hall agrees with the actress wholeheartedly. “100 percent. Modern parenting is especially difficult for parents of color,” the Fox Soul talk show host said. “We have to talk about not only ‘Are we gonna say Santa exists,’ but also ‘Is Santa Black?’ Again, this is exactly the conversation that we want to have on the show because some families might not even realize this is a thing.
“So we want all perspectives,” she continued. “Something as simple as Santa Claus could cause a big debate, so why not have a conversation with real parents of all backgrounds talking about how they approach Santa Claus, and what race he is? It might sound small, but these are the everyday things we’re thinking about.”
Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Union are also proud parents to their transgender daughter, Zaya Wade. “She’s compassionate, loving, whip-smart and we are so proud of her,” the LA’s Finest actress wrote on her Instagram page. “It’s Ok to listen to, love & respect your children exactly as they are. Love and light good people.”
