Hello. I'm Luther Layne, and I'm running to become the next State Assemblymember for New York's 138th Assembly District.

If your time is short, here are some key facts

The year I was born: 1992 (as Luther Saint-Joy)

City/Town I grew up in: Henrietta

City/Town I live in now: Rochester

Alma Matter: Rush-Henrietta High School and Monroe #1 Educational Services (BOCES)

Accomplishments: Met Iconic Rochester Natives, Acted in a movie, Became a multi-advocate, Wrote a Book Review

Occupations (Volunteer and Employment): Hospital Volunteer, Camping Reservation Agent, Actor

Other facts: I have many barriers, including the fact that I have autism

Why I run: Because I have seen everything, I lived through it all, and I care

For which area I will represent Albany: City of Rochester, Irondequoit, Webster, Penfield, Fairport, Bushnell's Basin, Perinton, Pittsford, East Rochester

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

I was born on November 5, 1992 as Luther Michael Saint-Joy. On that year, Rochester has gone through a lot. Kodak was king, Robert Earllocker was arrested and convicted for corruption in the Rochester Police Department, Rochester would face one of it's worse violent years of the 1990s, Rodney King would be found not guilty and Rochester would have a similar effect to George Floyd, Bill Clinton would become president, Mario Cuomo was Governor, and things were significantly different.

​

 Growing up in Monroe County, in what it's main city - Rochester - has been the most dangerous city in Upstate for nearly 50 years, and perhaps the most dangerous city in the state in general, surrounding by what the magic of the city once was - Kodak and cameras, I know first hand what it feels like to be in a situation. Only a few years into life, I would then be diagnosed with autism. I would then end up attending school in a different district. What I thought would be a great childhood was anything but great. I grew up in broken situations. I had multiple teachers physically restrain me for inappropriate reasons. I had a teacher that physically abused me, bullied me, and manipulate me - including a time where she would spread false rumors about me. I would part of group of children that would be part of a trend - drugging children for being "children", and placed in "special environments". In high school, I was a troublemaker in my Freshman year, with a teacher that also bullied me. I have seen first hand how dangerous schools are, and how they "dumb down" children. Meanwhile, at home, I would also find myself in a broken situation. Growing up in a culturally different environment, I know how it feels to be a black boy in a black and white world. I have seen a contrary to the city and the suburban life, and often I would miss out on things that would interest me as I grew up.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

Despite having gone through the horrors of my childhood, I have had my great times. The most memorable time that I consider to be joyful was almost every Saturday when I would go to SUNY Geneseo and hang out with older college students. Some of the students were, still are, and forever will be memorable. I would be well-liked, regardless of how broken things would be. SUNY Geneseo holds a special place in my heart, and it is part of why I am running.

​

Just when I thought that at age 18, I would be free, I wasn't. When I started at Monroe Community College, I was frightened. I felt that I wanted to be free when I really wasn't. I have foolishly used money for electronics, I would end up isolated at home, and I would move out on trial-and-error. Not only college never worked out, but I would continue to be entitled to handouts being that I have a disability. Who wouldn't want to have an experience of a 40-hour work week? Everyone sure does. Well, I never did. I would know first hand what getting a "handout" looks like. Things like "Obama Phone", and being on social security - not even having a job until the pandemic was a way of life. This was my adulthood.

​

​

​

 

 

 

 

 

​

​

​

​

 

 

 

 

As the years went on, I have volunteered for multiple nursing homes, two Rochester Regional hospitals, took on a role as a self-advocate (with a co-chair role at the ARC of Monroe), I would speak for DSP workers and for agencies, and yes...I did live in certified settings and I went through a lot. I would have my own web-show (which failed), travel to Buffalo and Albany for conferences, met major members of the community, appeared on TV, and I wrote book reviews (yes, I did write book reviews). I have also advocated heavily for transit needs, including being a loud voice for Uber and Lyft coming to Upstate New York. I took my first Amtrak ride in 2019, and I have met strangers that would become friends.

​

In 2020, I was ready to celebrate the year, with plans to visit Geneseo and play BINGO in Canada. Unbeknownst to myself, the COVID-19 Pandemic would begin, not knowing the gravity of the world health emergency. The world economy world shatter, hundreds of thousands of Americans would die, stores would close long-term, and once thriving businesses would close. In Rochester, my volunteer shifts would be suspended, my colleagues at Rochester General and Unity would die, my fellow brothers and sisters with disabilities would also die, the nursing home would become a hot scandal in Albany, and I was not prepared to be fully equipped for the pandemic. At the same time, George Floyd would be killed, and there would be protests on the streets. Rochester would be no exception, and I was there  to show my anger. Later that year, Daniel Pruide would be killed and a major protest would break out on the street, often with occasional violence. During the pandemic, I would have a lead role in a movie called Clowns In The Woods, catch up on sleep that I never had before, and I would have my first regular job from home helping patients, most of which I dealt with were in New York City, and I would briefly travel to Syracuse for doing a job in Deaf Relay, assisting TTY users, 7-1-1 callers, and T-Mobile relay users. I have also visited Pennsylvania - including in Harrisburg for a meeting with Pennsylvania State Representative Jessica Benham (who also has autism and identifies as LGBTQ+), and a visit to State College, PA. And yes, I went to New York City for a brief visit - that is what motivated me to run for Governor - at first, then downgrade to Assembly.

​

 

 

 

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

 

If there is one thing the pandemic has done well, it has exposed the great advantages and the ugliness of everything. I have seen children happier when they are homeschooled, more people getting vacation, and many for a time to reflect. Work from home has increased, and has proven to have significantly amazing results that should be permanent - the cost efficiency, the increase of productivity, the economic benefits, and the advantages to the employee and the employer that keeps the business going. On the other side, we have seen a simply uglier side. Corruption, the 1%, violation of children, sexual predators on the streets, increase of crime, and the effects of "forced schooling". Yes, you have seen that right, the effects of "forced" schooling. Time and over, every ugly agenda the establishments have done would be exposed.

​

After the 2020 election, I would once again be faced with another traumatic repercussion from high school. It's the fact that I have gone through fire. I would be bullied by a teacher, but I would also play the role of both victim and suspect throughout my school years. It has affected me greatly as a person, and as a human being naturally. It has also helped me understand why children act they way they do, especially teenagers.

​

What every person wants, often if it is a person who is different, is given the opportunity of a chance at the table. What every person would like to have and what he/she dreams of is what is denied. The right to own a home, let alone move away at or around 18 years old. The right to work full time, but with a system that will otherwise lose a person's lifeline. And jobs - new, up-to-date industries that could use a hands-on approach, often leads to corrupt paths and sadly, allowing young adults and older adults alike to be frightened. I have been through special and regular education schools, and I have seen the horror.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

As an Western New Yorker, let alone a New Yorker as a whole, I have been through it all. From BOCES to public schools, from the suburbs and the country to the city, and even across Western New York, into Albany, and occasionally in New York City, I see a potential that no one else can even see. As I always tell people, that it takes one person to speak up and call it out. New York can rise above like it has before, from tragedies, to crime, and from 9/11 to storms. I also believe that if I held a seat in Albany, the State of New York can rise from the COVID-19 pandemic significantly quicker, and allowing the state to rise 20x higher than anywhere else in the world, allowing dangerous cities and neighborhoods to become the safest in America, and more jobs available to New Yorkers and outsiders alike. I believe that it starts with serving a portion of Rochester, with the advantage of crossing district lines to persuade ideas for the common good of all New Yorkers and those in the Rochester area community. Being a volunteer at two Rochester hospitals, multiple nursing homes, along with experience living in group homes and fighting for the disability community, and I see what these policies have done on both sides of the aisle.  Accessibility will also be a major concern of mine, and will be a high priority.