We were lucky to catch up with Ayanna Davis recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ayanna thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

My most meaningful project would definitely be my book ‘I’m Autistic And I’m Phenomenal’ I feel this is my most meaningful project being that I mainly advocate for black autistic women & girls to gain visibility & have access to proper resources and this story is seen and told through the eyes of a little black autistic girl, I’m Autistic & Im Phenomenal is a story that displays the challenges but more importantly the joys of autism through the eyes of a little autistic black girl, Experience her journey as she navigates both difficulties and the beauty of her unique perspective, shedding light on the power of acceptance and embracing differences

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have Illustrated over 30 Children’s Books

I am an Award winning artist and autism advocate Ayanna davis im known as Phenomenally Autistic I advocate for black autistics to gain visibility to receive proper resources to have a better quality of life living as autistic I did my very art show at 7 years old were I sold my very first piece I use my love of art to express myself when the the difficulties and challenges of autism doesn’t allow me to, I live with 5 autoimmune diseases and have survived over 300 seizures but that does not stop me from spreading my messages of self love, joy, equality, diversity and inclusion through my books advocacy, & the arts.
shedding light on the power acceptance and embracing differences is important to me
Art has Always been my escape from this overstimulating world so the expression of art and advocacy has been a saving grace for me and learning experience for others,
my art advocacy and illustrations teaches young girls to know that they are magical! Their hair & skintone are beautiful & they can do anything! It promotes self love , self acceptance & teaches young people that they are all beautiful, representation matters,it installs confidence & pride seeing images of themselves & their accomplishments represented in a positive light! Along with creating autistic characters I have created characters with vitiligo, albinism , limb differences and more, iWas presented with a proclamation making April 26th Ayannas day in westchester county New York , I was also presented my second proclamation may 8th in my hometown making me the first black autistic woman to be honored here & was given to me by the first black woman mayor. I always sensed my differences but lacked understanding. I was often perceived as the ‘weird, awkward, black girl, when in reality, my struggles stemmed from anxiety and overstimulation. The face of autism has never been a black girls face so that was the last thing anyone thought I was, I was living in a world with a mind that wasn’t wired for me, people try to change us but don’t often realize it would be easier to just leave a little space for us let us be ourselves show you how life is viewed through our lens it can be a very beautiful thing if you give people a chance, I’m not weird I’m autistic, and theres nothing wrong with that. People are in denial about how they treat people who are different, my hope for my art is to draw people to my pages , come for the art and maybe stay for some advocacy’im a former theater kid, im an award winning choreographer who’s work has been on national platforms on several occasions

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Like a lot of other autistics seizures can be a problem surviving over 300 is a blessing and I’m grateful to be able to still be doing what I love I recently hit my one year milestone of being seizure free in 2023 and that was a big win for me as I was able to continue illustrating and advocating without heaviness of episodes that comes with that territory

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I lesson I had to unlearn was that I was unworthy and that my voice did not matter the backstory is really simple is very common for disabled people feel unseen and unheard and I was told by a professional authority figure when I was a teenager that I wouldn’t get very far or be much in life and I believed her and that stuck with me for a very long time it start to change until I received my autism diagnosis and my self love and worth journey began and I realized not only am I worthy I’m more than worthy

Contact Info:

• Website: Linktree.com/phenomenallyautistic
• Instagram: Phenomenallyautistic
• Facebook: Phenomenally Autistic
• Youtube: Phenomenallyautistic
• Other: TikTok: Phenomenallyautistic

Image Credits
K Murray Ayanna davis