The Sistergirls of Tiwi Islands: How a remote community in northern Australia has the highest population of transgender people in the country - including children as young as six

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3213735/The-Sistergirls-Tiwi-Islands-remote-community-northern-Australia-highest-population-transgender-people-country-including-children-young-six.html

The Daily Mail/By Naomi Tsvirko For Daily Mail Australia Published: 22:20 EST, 29 August 2015  | Updated: 22:29 EST, 29 August 2015

"While the Sistergirls are largely accepted in the remote community, there are still many instances of serious abuse including domestic violence and rape, according to SBS. 

Laura Orsto, 31, courageously told her conservative parents that she identified as a Sistergirl when she was just in primary school.

'Age 10 I knew I was a Sistergirl. It was really, really, very hard for me to come out because my parents are really strict and didn't want me to be out there as a Sistergirl. They wanted me to be saved,' she told BuzzFeed.

Ms Orsto was 16 when she started to publicly live as a woman but said it only took place after a long fight for acceptance within the Indigenous community - one that has strong traditional views toward gender roles that are religiously grounded."

I had the great pleasure of catching up with Cristal at the meeting in Canberra, she isn't featured in this story but lives on the Tiwi Islands.

A wonderful woman who has faced immense discrimination but is a loving, charming and totally fun person to be with.