Paige Layle | |
---|---|
Born | Paige Hennekam August 2, 2000 Kawartha Lakes, Canada |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 2015–present |
Website | paigelayle |
Paige Hennekam (born August 2, 2000), better known as Paige Layle, is a Canadian ADHD and autism acceptance activist and author. She [lower-alpha 1] began posting about her experiences with ADHD and autism on social media in March 2020 and has since gained a large following on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. She also wrote the book But Everyone Feels This Way: How an Autism Diagnosis Saved My Life.
Layle was born Paige Hennekam in Kawartha Lakes on August 2, 2000. She attempted suicide at the age of 15, after which she was diagnosed with autism, [2] [3] OCD, [4] and ADHD. [5] [6]
Layle started making TikTok videos about autism in March 2020, [2] [7] after hearing an audio clip on TikTok that mocked autistic people. [8] She created a four-part video series on autism in girls to address common misconceptions about the disorder. [5] In 2020 and 2021, she joined other members of the autism community in weighing in on the controversy surrounding Sia's film Music . [9]
In 2021, Layle and other autism advocates criticized Color the Spectrum: A Livestream to Support the Autism Community, a fundraiser launched by Mark Rober in support of NEXT for AUTISM. She critiqued NEXT for funding Autism Speaks, an organization that has received backlash for its attempts to "cure" autism. To counter Color the Spectrum, Layle and other advocates planned to host a fundraising livestream on the same date and time to raise money for the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN). [10] [11] The livestream was later cancelled due to allegations that had ASAN plagiarized work from Indigenous creator Autistic, Typing. [12]
In 2022, Layle was a performer for the audiobook version of Wendy Walker's American Girl, produced by Audible. [13]
As of December 2023, Layle has 2.6 million followers on TikTok, [14] [15] 131,000 followers on Instagram, [16] and 171,000 subscribers on YouTube. [17]
Layle's first book, But Everyone Feels This Way: How an Autism Diagnosis Saved My Life, was released in March 2024. [18]
Layle is pansexual [6] and uses "she/they" pronouns. [1] She continues to reside in Kawartha Lakes, where she works as a teacher. [19] [20]
Neurodiversity is a framework for understanding human brain function that recognizes the diversity of human cognition as a biological fact. The neurodiversity paradigm argues that diversity in human cognition is normal and that some conditions classified as mental disorders are differences and disabilities that are not necessarily pathological.
The autism rights movement, also known as the autistic acceptance movement, is a social movement allied with disability rights that emphasizes a neurodiversity paradigm, viewing autism as a disability with variations in the human brain rather than as a disease to be cured. The movement advocates for several goals, including greater acceptance of autistic traits and behaviors; reforms of services - i.e. services that focus on improving quality of life and well-being instead of suppression and masking of autistic traits that are adaptive or not harmful or imitations of social behaviors of allistic (non-autistic) peers ; the creation of social networks and events that allow autistic people to socialize on their own terms; and the recognition of the autistic community as a minority group.
Autistic Pride Day is a pride celebration for autistic people held on 18 June each year. Autistic pride recognises the importance of pride for autistic people and its role in bringing about positive changes in the broader society.
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocacy organization run by and for individuals on the autism spectrum. ASAN advocates for the inclusion of autistic people in decisions that affect them, including: legislation, depiction in the media, and disability services.
NEXT for AUTISM is a non-profit organization founded in 2003 to address the needs of autistic people and their families. The organization was founded by Laura and Harry Slatkin and Ilene Lainer. One of NEXT for AUTISM's most well known accomplishments was opening the first charter school in New York to exclusively serve autistic students.
Music is a 2021 American musical drama film directed by singer-songwriter Sia. The film was co-written by Sia and Dallas Clayton, and stars Kate Hudson, Leslie Odom Jr. and Maddie Ziegler. It marks Sia's feature film directorial debut. The film follows Zu, a newly sober drug dealer who becomes the sole guardian of her half-sister Music, a teenage non-verbal autistic girl.
Lisa and Lena Mantler, collectively known as Lisa and Lena, are German TikTokers who rose to prominence on the defunct video sharing application Musical.ly. They had over 30 million followers, making them the #1 most-followed creators at the time on the platform.
Mary-Belle Kirschner, better known as Belle Delphine, is a South African-born British media personality, pornographic actress, model, and YouTuber. Her social media accounts feature erotic and cosplay modelling, sometimes blending the two together. Her online persona began in 2018 through her cosplay modeling on Instagram. Her posts on the platform were often influenced by popular memes and trends.
TikTok, whose mainland Chinese counterpart is Douyin, is a short-form video hosting service owned by Chinese internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from three seconds to 60 minutes. It can be accessed with a smart phone app.
Morénike Giwa Onaiwu is an American educator, author, and autism and HIV advocate. Alongside E. Ashkenazy and Lydia Brown, Onaiwu is an editor of All the Weight of Our Dreams, an anthology of art and writing entirely by autistic people of color published by the Autism Women's Network in June 2017.
Loren Gray Beech is an American singer-songwriter and media personality. Gray rose to prominence in 2015 on the video sharing app, Musical.ly. In 2018, she released her debut single "My Story" under Virgin Records, who she was signed to until February 2021, when she became an independent artist.
Charli Grace D'Amelio is an American social media personality. She was a competitive dancer for over a decade before starting her social media career in 2019, when she began posting dance videos on the video-sharing platform TikTok. She quickly amassed a large following and subsequently became the most-followed creator on the platform in March 2020 until she was surpassed by Khaby Lame in June 2022. With over 151 million followers, she is the second most-followed person on TikTok, as of 2024.
Brittany Alexis Tomlinson, known professionally as Brittany Broski, is an American social media personality, YouTuber, and comedian. She initially gained fame after a video of her tasting kombucha for the first time went viral on TikTok in 2019. She signed to United Talent Agency later that year and has since hosted the TikTok-produced podcast For You (2021), the pop culture-focused podcasts Violating Community Guidelines (2022–2023) with Sarah Schauer, The Broski Report (2023–present), and the YouTube talk show Royal Court (2023–present). She has frequently been referred to as one of TikTok's biggest stars and noted for her meme-focused humor.
Mikayla Jane Nogueira Hawken is an American social media influencer. As of February 2023, Nogueira has 14.6 million followers on TikTok, over 2.4 million followers on her Instagram page, and over 501K followers on her personal Instagram account.
Elyse Myers is an American social media influencer, comedian, and musician from Nebraska. She gained notoriety on TikTok with an account of her worst date during which she purchased 100 tacos.
Chloé Sarah Hayden is an Australian actress, social-media personality, activist in the disability rights movement, podcast host, and author. As an actress, she is known for her role as Quinni Gallagher-Jones in the 2022 Netflix reboot of Heartbreak High.
Katherine Grace "Katie" Feeney is an American social media personality with over 13M followers across TikTok, Youtube, Instagram and Snapchat. Her content primarily consists of sports, college life and lifestyle content. She also has served as the social media correspondent for the Washington Commanders since April 2022.
Catie Osborn, known by the username Catieosaurus, is an American TikToker, actor, podcaster, sex educator, adult performer, and mental health and disability advocate, based in Atlanta, Georgia. Much of her work is on the topic of living with ADHD, particularly its impact on sexuality and relationships. Since joining TikTok in November 2020, she has acquired over one million followers Her social media presence also includes Twitter, YouTube, Twitch, and OnlyFans. Additionally she co-hosts the podcast Catie and Erik's Infinite Quest with Erik Gude. Her commentary is known for focusing on the intersections of ADHD, neurodiversity, and kink.
Mercury Stardust is an American author, TikToker, transgender activist, burlesque performer, and home repair and maintenance educator. Known on TikTok as the "Trans Handy Ma'am", she provides tips and advice on DIY home repair.