Waka Flocka Flame under fire for supporting LGBTQ daughter after past transphobic comments
As he got pushback against his support of 15-year-old Charlie Williams, Flame said he's 'not a phobic.'
Rapper Waka Flocka Flame is getting backlash after supporting his teen stepdaughter, whose girlfriend escorted her to her quinceañera, after he publicly criticized, ridiculed and intentionally misgendered Zaya Wade in the past.
In an interview last February with DJ Whoo Kid in which he was asked about comments by Lil Boosie, which were critical and even hostile toward Wade and her NBA-famous father, Dywane Wade, Flame implied that kids might be “influenced” by the attention Zaya received for transitioning.
In the interview, Flame was far less hostile than the show’s hosts in criticizing transgender children.
As social media influencers pushed back against his support of 15-year-old Charlie Williams, Flame said he is “not a phobic; no, I’m not none of that.”
“But what I’m gonna say, bro, is I’m gonna support my daughter,” he continued. “Y’all stop running with this narrative that she coming out ’cause she ain’t never hiding from nothing. She’s not no face, no spokesman, no nothing. She’s living her f—ing life, man. That’s all it needs to be. Cut it out, man; that s— lame.”
In the video, which the rapper posted to Instagram, he added: “Who raised y’all? Serious question for y’all. Are you raising a teenager? Are you a parent? Do you know how it feels? I’m not supportive of nothing; this is my daughter. The word ‘supportive’ don’t matter when you’re a parent because you’re automatically doing that. Y’all [are] tripping.”
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Williams’ mother, Tammy Rivera, Flame’s wife and co-star of his We TV reality show Waka & Tammy: What the Flocka, defended her husband both at the time of the first comments and again this week. She directly responded to comments by comedian and social media influencer Zoie, who called Flame’s support “bulls–t,” saying, “Everybody should be treated fairly, no matter who you like.”
Initially, Rivera said Flame was entitled to his “opinion.” This week, she said: “Are people allowed to grow? Are people allowed to change? Because it seems like you’re damned if you do, you’re damned if you don’t.”
Flame earned praise recently for dancing a father-daughter dance with Williams, whose biological father did not attend.
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