Don Cheadle showed his support for transgender children when he hosted Saturday Night Live.
The actor wore a T-shirt that read “Protect Trans Kids” as he introduced Gary Clark Jr., who served as the musical guest.
The 54-year-old also took a dig at President Donald Trump during the show, where he wore a red and white Soviet Union hockey jersey that had the president’s name on the back with the number 45. Trump is the 45th president of the U.S.
“I awoke to so much support and love!! thank you @nbcsnl for the opportunity to play and pay respect and throw shade in an historic space in an historic time. keep fighting, y’all. evil grows in the dark,” the Oscar-nominated actor wrote Sunday on Twitter.
Over half of transgender male teens have said they’ve attempted suicide, according to a 2018 report by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Almost 30 percent of transgender female teens said they’ve made suicide attempts.
Homeless rates among transgender youth are also high. “Family rejection and discrimination and violence have contributed to a large number of transgender and other LGBQ-identified youth who are homeless in the United States—an estimated 20-40% of the more than 1.6 million homeless youth,” writes the National Center for Transgender Equality.
