From the time she was 7 until she was 12, Melanie Salazar says she was tortured, raped and beaten by family members. All because she was born a boy, but always knew inside she was a girl. She prefers Melanie, instead of her given name, Melanio.
But when a gang member repeatedly threatened to decapitate her with a chainsaw — after he raped and kidnapped her — she decided to flee her native Honduras and seek asylum in the United States.