“I know race is not real”: Meet Dr. Ronni Gladden, black Professor of English who identifies as white, uses pronoun ‘they’

Meet Dr. Ronni Gladden, a tenured professor of English at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, public speaker, actor, and self-described advocate for “transracial” identity.

Born Black and male, Ronni—who uses the pronoun ‘they’—now identifies as a white woman, explaining that a “repressed White female identity” has long existed within them, yearning for expression, Daily Mail UK reported.

Dr. Gladden belongs to a niche community identifying as “transracial,” a term describing those who are both transgender and transracial. While Gladden’s journey challenges traditional views on race, he maintained that race is a social construct, which they believe renders it a choice.

Despite the controversial nature of such beliefs, Dr. Gladden, who earned a doctorate in Educational Leadership from Northern Kentucky University, holds that there is no intrinsic or biological distinction between races. “I know race is not real,” Gladden asserts in his book. “It’s only so because society says it is.”

Gladden’s personal evolution has included several physical adjustments, beginning with a nose job at 19, some lip modifications, and the use of lighter foundation to reflect their inner identity.

Describing his complexion as “pretty brown,” Gladden acknowledged to BBC Radio 4 that outward appearances do not convey their inner identity as a white woman.

Recalling experiences from as early as preschool, Gladden spoke of being drawn to the “white female aesthetic,” with memories of longing to feel white. He said: “I knew […] that I was drawn to the white female aesthetic. I magnetically connected with the hair texture, the skin complexion, the bone structure, the social cues and the mathematics of that all.’