Mental Health Fair Celebrates Healing, Community

by Alina Rose Chen The New Haven independent

“No shame, no fear — we are healing here!”

This chant — led by speaker, poet, and local activist Sun Queen — was the guiding spirit behind Saturday’s Mental Health Awareness Fair, organized by the Mental Harmony Foundation. The event, hosted for the second time at the Dixwell Community Q House, brought together neighbors, families, and friends to address the social stigma around discussing mental health and to celebrate the honesty and support found in New Haven’s Black and Brown communities.

Organizer Aryella Edwards.

“You cannot heal what you cannot name,” Sun reminded the crowd. ​“Healing is a form of protest.”

This year also marked the fifth anniversary of the fair — an event first organized in 2021 by Aryella Edwards, founder of the Mental Harmony Foundation, as part of CARE’s New Haven Health Leader program. Since its inception, the fair has steadily grown; this year, it featured 20 vendors and drew hundreds of attendees. Edwards has personally witnessed how it has benefitted her community:

“I see a big difference, a big change where people are not afraid to talk about their experiences, talk about what resources they used — or still do — to stay mentally well,” Edwards said. 

Edwards’ sister, Hill Alder Angel Hubbard, noted the increased attendance of families and children compared to previous years, as well as the strong community involvement from organizers and local businesses. She also reflected on the cultural shift she has witnessed. ​“We come from an era where what goes on in the house stays in the house,” she said. ​“We’re not just trying to break generational curses — it’s the generational hurts. It’s the unhealed trauma we’re trying to break.”

Hubbard also presented Edwards with a Board of Alders City Citation, celebrating her efforts with the Mental Harmony Foundation.

Throughout the afternoon, attendees and vendors mingled and introduced themselves. Many vendors sold food, while others offered activities like making sensory bottles or handed out free goodies. The community spirit was further energized by a lineup of performers, including the Elite Drill Squad and Drum Corps, which brings together performers from across the city.

Edwards and Hubbard embrace after the presentation of the City Citation.

Fifteen-year-old twins Jonnae and Johni Dozier, members of the Drill Squad and incoming sophomores at Hillhouse, said they enjoyed performing with the team and appreciated the ​“good environment.” Before their performance, they visited many of the booths and noted that the atmosphere around mental health was different from what they usually encounter. ​“Mostly, people just joke about it,” they said — especially on the internet.

The event also highlighted the importance of perseverance, self-care, and building supportive communities. Vendor Akwasha Bey, who was selling hair oil and promoting her salon in honor of her late mother, spoke candidly about the private struggles that often go unseen.

“I started this hair line when my mom was sick with cancer — I wanted to help her with her hair falling out from her chemotherapy,” Bey shared. ​“I crafted this product hoping to help her, but she passed away. I just felt the need to keep going so I could change other people’s lives.”

Bey emphasized how people who seem strong may be quietly struggling. ​“No one stops and sees how you’re doing or really asks because you make it look so good and easy,” she said. ​“That doesn’t mean the struggling isn’t happening. We just don’t get the attention that other people get — so I encourage people to do the self-work within themselves, whatever that looks like for you, whether it is getting more spiritual or simply just laying a blanket on the grass and being with yourself and your thoughts.”

Bey participated in the event alongside her husband, author and veteran King Darice Bey, who was also promoting his book, ​“Making Dream$ Reality,” which deals with perseverance and the importance of healthy mindsets.

The New Haven Police Department shared their work in mental health advocacy and victim support during the event.

Mental health advocate and speech pathologist Myla Duane also shared insights on navigating non-inclusive communities and conversations around mental health. During her graduate program, she was the only Black student across five cohorts in a field ranked among the top five most white-dominated professions in the United States.

“It’s not about securing your spot at the table; it’s about building your own table,” Duane said. ​“It’s about building your own chairs and inviting your own guests.”

She emphasized that self-care is essential to being a strong community member: ​“Before we can pour back into our community,” Duane explained, ​“we have to pour into ourselves. That doesn’t just mean physically — it means mentally too, because mental health is health.”