Meet Playboy's First Ever Transgender Playmate

Playboy magazine is perhaps the epitome of the first rule in media 101, sex sells. While many people have been up in arms over its depiction (and allegedly treatment) of women in the past, the magazine has as of late been thwarted back into the news for a different set of reasons. Just late last month, its founder Hugh Hefner passed away due to a combination of health problems, and his death sparked the revival of the conversation surrounding the magazine’s legacy of 64 years and counting, and how Hefner’s tenure influenced the perception of women.
Regardless of whether you’re a fan of what the magazine stands for, the latest issue of Playboy will definitely have your eyes peeled like never before. Ines Rau, a 26-year-old French model of North African heritage, is set to feature as Playmate of its November/December 2017 issue. She has a banging body, piercing hazel eyes and a jaw that could cut diamonds.
Oh, and she’s a transgender woman.



Isn’t she gorgeous?
Even before Rau got the part as Playboy magazine’s Playmate of the Month, she has had a multitude of other modelling achievements including gracing the pages of Vogue Italia, starring in a Balmain campaign and walking the runway of a Hood By Air fashion show. She has actually even been seen in Playboy Magazine once in 2014, but did not at that time carry the same title that she does today.
For those who are confused with Playboy magazine’s current stance on nudity, it’s a hundred percent yes. As an upcoming Playmate, Rau will be featured completely nude and on the centrefold poster in the scheduled issue of the magazine. She will also get the opportunity to discuss her experience with gender identity and coming out, and is set to be a voice for the LGBT community, women and those who feel excluded within society.

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In an interview with Billboard magazine about her going full monty, Rau says, “Nudity means a lot to me, since I went through a transition to get where I want to be. Nudity is a celebration of the human being without all the excess. It’s not about sexuality but the beauty of the human body, whether male or female.”
Ethics aside, it seems that Playboy magazine has taken positive strides in empowering the women they feature. Hopefully the beautiful models who will feature the future spreads can continue being a vehicle for productive conversation, empowering their tribes and moving culture forward.
Header image: Daily Wire
Other images: Billboard