Thursday was a monumental day for Laverne Cox.
Mayor de Blasio and first lady Chirlane McCray presented the LGBT activist and actress with a day named in her honor Thursday evening in celebration of Pride Month at Gracie Mansion.
“In all she does, she enlightens and uplifts. I was honored to proclaim Thursday, June 22, 2017, Laverne Cox Day in New York City,” de Blasio tweeted Friday alongside a photo of the actress holding the day’s official proclamation high. The Emmy-nominated transgender actress emerged as a vocal advocate for the LGBT community after landing the role of transgender inmate Sophia Burset in Netflix’s “Orange is the New Black.”
“Laverne has spent a lifetime – a lifetime my friends – breaking down barriers,” de Blasio said at the event. “Laverne is a great actor, but Laverne, in my humble opinion, is an even greater activist, illuminating the struggle, illuminating the lives of people, including through her documentary work and helping change lives.”
Cox accepted the honor and shared her love for a “city that nurtured” her with a crowd of cheering supporters in a nearly five-minute speech.
“How crazy is this? Can you believe that a black transgender woman from Alabama, raised by a single mother, has a day named after her in New York City?” Cox asked the crowd. The actress can be seen covering her face in excitement in a clip she shared on Instagram.
Aside from starring in “OITNB,” Cox also played Dr. Frank-N-Furter on the TV movie remake of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” and starred alongside Katherine Heigl in the now-canceled CBS show “Doubt.”
