'Good Trouble' actress Sherry Cola embraces queerness as 2022 SF Pride Grand Marshal

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- With San Francisco Pride's return to the city after two years, "Good Trouble" actress Sherry Cola is being featured as one of the parade's Grand Marshals this year.

She spoke with the host of ABC7's SF Pride coverage, Reggie Aqui, about what this title means to her.

RELATED: San Francisco Pride Parade and Celebration | Watch this Sunday on ABC7

"I'm finally embracing all of my identities more than ever. You know, I'm so proud, I feel so liberated in the fact that I'm queer, Chinese-American, immigrant, woman," said Cola. "All of these identities that society never rooted for, now I'm embracing as superpowers."

"And I just really hope to create some type of ripple effect in the work that I do, in the conversations that I have, in the presence that I'm giving at SF Pride."

Cola went on to explain why representation of the LGBTQ community within the media matters by reflecting on her time as the character Alice on the show.

"Because I was given the opportunity to play the role of Alice, I thought to myself, in 2018, you know, this character potentially could be a role model because I've never really seen this character growing up myself," she said.

While Cola shared that she was openly queer within her circle of friends, she talked about how a conversation with her mom allowed her to become her full, authentic self.

"I finally just sat her down and told her about the fact that I'm queer, and the fact that I'm about to portray this character that, you know, could inspire a lot of people. How can I portray this character authentically if I wasn't spreading my wings fully, you know, in real life?"

Cola's hope is that her presence at this year's event will inspire others to continue to have that conversation.

Watch the video in the player above for the full interview with Cola.

Disney is the parent company of Freeform TV and this station.

Watch ABC7's exclusive live coverage on TV and streaming online starting at 10:30 a.m. as the parade kicks off with Reggie Aqui, Drew Tuma, Liz Kreutz, Jobina Fortson, Julian Glover, and the rest of the ABC7 team.

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