Fashioning Zaya Wade in the Press: Authenticity, Black Femininity, and Transnormativity

Abstract

Since Zaya Wade came out as transgender, she has continued to take up prominence in popular culture and press coverage of Zaya has centered on her fashion. In this article, we analyze press coverage of Zaya to examine the intersections of Blackness, femininity, trans identity, and child celebrity. Building on scholarship about trans representation and performing Black femininity in popular media, we focus our attention on how Zaya is presented as authentic—a core theme in this scholarship. In our analysis, we illustrate how these representations appear seemingly positive by shedding light on Zaya's unique perspectives about family, beauty, and activism. Yet, we find the press coverage only promotes Zaya's unique identity to the extent her performance of authentic Black femininity upholds transnormativity. This article unpacks how authenticity is used as a strategy of transnormativity that is animated by Zaya's Blackness, femininity, and status as a child celebrity and activist.