Transgender activist Georgie Stone has called for "strong, committed allies" instead of "fairweather friends" amid repeated attacks on the trans and nonbinary community.
Ms Stone addressed the National Press Club on Tuesday emphasising the importance of better visibility to help dispel "dangerous" perceptions of the trans community.
Stone, a patron of trans support organisation Transcend Australia, was the youngest and only the second trans person to address the National Press Club.
"We can't keep fighting by ourselves. This weight that we're carrying is crushing and relentless," Ms Stone said.
"We need our allies to shoulder some of the burden because you can't celebrate with us at World Pride and then scatter when the attacks come.
"If you want the pride and the glitter and the confetti you also have to stand with us when it's uncomfortable and scary to you."
Ms Stone spoke about the silence in the wake of attacks on trans people, urging supporters to call out transphobia and engage in conversations with the trans community.
Her address comes after a national tour by British anti-trans activist Kellie-Jay Keen-Minshull, who had been condemned for spreading disinformation and hate against transgender people.
"I found it incredible how little friends and family have reached out to me over the last few weeks with the attacks that have come," she said.
"A few weeks before World Pride they were more than happy to post about me and say, you know, 'I'm so proud of you', and then when the attacks have started to come, just radio silence."
Ms Stone called for better funding for family supports groups, easier access to "life saving" gender-affirming medical healthcare and stronger laws around LGBTQIA+ vilification.
She spoke about the "culture wars" being espoused by anti-trans politicians and sections of the media to "whip up fear and hysteria" about the trans community and implored them to stop "using us as a weapon" .
She described the "cyclical" process of accepting herself, and then "something like the last few weeks happens and I'm right back at the beginning".
"A trans person who loves themselves loudly and visibly is a radical act of political resistance. But it is also an act of courage and empathy. It's not easy," she said.
"I'm still unlearning the shame that I've been taught to have about myself since childhood."
The Order of Australia was the first transgender character on the Australian soap, Neighbours, and along with her mum Rebekah Robertson, fought a successful legal battle for easier access to early medical decisions.
Ms Stone outlined some of her early experiences, having to change primary schools after being misgendered by teachers who forced her to use the male toilets and change rooms.
"My only option was to get changed behind the tree with my mum," she said.
