Michael Ealy is one of the most notoriously private men in Hollywood, a personality trait the actor says has been a way of life since high school. It’s for that reason we always find out about major life events in the 43-year-old star’s life after the fact — like his marriage and the births of his children — and we’ve never seen photos of his kids and rarely his wife. But the DC native made an exception to his privacy rule over the weekend, posting a rare photo of wife Khatira Rafiqzada, who’s from Afghanistan, on Instagram in protest of Donald Trump’s Muslim travel ban with the simple caption: #NoMuslimBan
Ealy and Rafiqzada tied the knot in October 2012 after four years of dating, a marriage that was one of the best-kept secrets in Hollywood and a detrimental revelation for fans of the actor. A rep for Ealy told People magazine of the marriage in December of that year, explaining, “Michael has always been a private guy, and he wanted to enjoy his time as a newlywed with his wife privately. Now that some time has passed and the holidays are here, he wanted to share the news with his fans that he is married and very happy.”
A year-and-a-half later, Ealy begrudgingly revealed to Wendy Williams that he’d celebrated his first Father’s Day in June 2014 and even shared the name of his newborn son, Elijah Rakim. And just this past November, the newest Being Mary Jane cast member announced he and his wife welcomed a baby girl. He told Steve Harvey of the experience of having a daughter, “I just discovered a whole new love. I’ve never ever felt this way before. I was wondering if I could love another child as much as I love my son. And what I realized, within hours of my daughter being born, not only do I love her just as much…if not more. It’s a special kind of protective love. Within two hours, I understood your emotions at your daughter’s wedding.”
Ealy and Rafiqzada are obviously personally affected by Trump’s hasty travel ban, as are many other Americans. If there was ever a time when his wife’s visibility mattered, it’s now.
