Yimpininni - Sistergirls
"Sistergirls" has become a general term for transgender and transsexual men. But in the Tiwi Islands, it's a whole culture unto itself. There are 70 sistergirls living on the islands, and the numbers are growing every year. In that small community, Sistergirls account for a whopping 4% of the population. This has been described by the Aids Council as the highest percentage of gays in any community they have come across.
Refusal To Be Defined By Outsiders
- Sistergirls don't like to be referred to as "gays". They prefer the term "women". They also reject a lot of the myths about them, both from the mainstream and from Indigenous society. Firstly, they reject the claim that they are "unnatural". A Sistergirl is born, not made. It is clear by the age of two or three if a person has been born this way, and when they get to the age of six, parents give them to older sistergirls to look after because they're in that special category.
- Sistergirls are distinct from the wider homosexual community, as they have their own internal law. They have their own customs, rituals, rules and leadership, and as such are a separate cultural group rather than part of an undifferentiated "gay" category defined by broad definitions of lifestyle or sexuality choices.
- Sistergirls reject early anthropological studies of Tiwi society, which omitted their identity from the texts. Transgenderism has been a part of Tiwi custom since time out of mind, but in the old days the Sistergirls were called "Yimpininni", and were honoured, rather than subjected to the rape, violence and marginalisation that came with western colonialism. These horrors continue to plague them, and are only increasing with each year that passes.
- Sistergirls also reject mainland Indigenous claims that they have been cursed, and that their condition is part of a punishment for wrongdoing from the supernatural world. This is a good example of the way colonial values can warp traditional beliefs. It is also the reason why you rarely see "out gay" people in many mainland Indigenous communities.
Offensive?
I can think of a lot of my countrymen who would be offended by this article. I apologise for the offense, but our own discourses are just as valid as those of the "mainstream", and as such, equally invite critical evaluation. This is the only way we can ever hope to get the colonial chewing gum out of our cultural hair. (A clumsy metaphor, but I'm keeping it.) We need to have the courage to do this.
As such, I would like to make sure my site isn't completely dominated by a heterosexual outlook. So I am expecting to post some guest articles or blogs by trans-gender Native Americans over the next couple of weeks. But all contributions are welcome from gay, lesbian and transgender Indigenous people - email me.
