Laverne Cox congratulated Bruce Jenner on his interview with Diane Sawyer on Friday night. The
Orange Is The New Black star shared her support for the 65-year-old Olympian after the interview aired.
“Sending lots of love and support of #BruceJenner and their family tonight. It is always brave to stand in one’s truth. Congrats darling.”
Cox also attended the
2015 White House Correspondents Dinner on Sunday night, as reported by
Bustle. The actress spoke with MSNBC’s Janet Mock about Bruce Jenner’s interview and how it helped save lives that night.
“I think a lot of people tuned in expecting to see a spectacle, and they tuned in and saw a profoundly nuanced, complicated, beautiful human being. I thought ABC handled it really beautifully… I had spoken to Bruce several months back, and the same person I had spoken to on the phone, who really just loves their children so much and wants their family to be happy, was the person I saw on television last night.”
Laverne also revealed her exchange with Bruce when they spoke on the phone earlier that day.
“[I said] This is sort of like another gold medal. And they said, ‘This is better than a gold medal.’ “
Laverne Cox became an important figure for the transgender community. She also became the first
transgender person to be nominated for an Emmy, according to
People magazine. She’s seen how her fame and visibility has helped inspire other transgender men and women, but she said that visibility isn’t the only thing that the community needs. Cox added that there’s still a lot work that needs to be done on lowering the suicide rates and ridding discrimination against transgender people.
“I’ve heard from so many people that have been saved because of my visibility, but visibility still doesn’t save a lot of trans lives a lot of those who are still committing suicide, still being murdered at disproportionate levels, still experiencing job discrimination, housing discrimination, healthcare discrimination.
There is so much more work that needs to be done to policy and structural changes.”