Fall 2025 Community Histories Lab Open House

Jaylen*, a junior at Yale, describes her experience assisting and representing AECY at the Community Histories Lab Open House on September 13, 2025. 

*Jaylen Moment ‘27 (she/her/hers) is an undergraduate student at Yale majoring in the History of Science, Medicine, and Public Health and pursuing a Global Health Certificate. 

Community Histories Lab Open House Panel at the Possible Futures bookstore. Panelists included DeShaun Lyons, Fred Harris the Third, Dr. Pamela Monk Kelley, Marcella Monk Flake, and his daughter, Vanessa Harris, as well as CHL Directors Ayah Nuriddin and Marco Ramos. Photograph taken by Jaylen Moment. 09/13/2025.

How do we utilize powerful, yet intentionally hidden, histories to inform the possible futures that we would like to create?

This question is one that the event “Learning with New Haven: Celebrating the Launch of the Community Histories Lab” brought to life. The Community Histories Lab, based at the Yale School of Medicine, “aims to unearth local histories of New Haven and Yale University that promote justice along the lines of race, class, disability, gender, and sexuality.” Lab directors include Professors Ayah Nuridden and Marco Ramos. At the Lab’s Open House, the phenomenal work of Fred Harris, a founding member of the New Haven Black Panther Party, was described through the anecdotal stories of his children, grandchildren, and other activists. 

Harris’ dynamic legacy begins in the Hill neighborhood — a diverse area in New Haven that numerous individuals of color migrated to in order to circumvent the Jim Crow laws that plagued the South. Harris gradually observed the improper distribution of resources flowing within his surrounding environment through the consistent closing of parks and lack of toilet paper in his children’s schools. He completely modified the trajectory of racial disparities in his locality by spearheading a grassroots movement for housing and educational justice, leading to improved treatment by the police force and vocal advocacy for housing affordability. He prioritized community-based approaches, such as bridging the gap between Yale and New Haven, and fought to give Hill residents more of a voice in the city’s anti-poverty programs. Due to all of his achievements in community activism, the street corner of South Frontage Road and Park Street was renamed “Fred Harris Way.” 

The renaming to “Fred Harris Way” was commemorated by the Community Histories Lab the day before, on September 12, 2025, with an unveiling of the renamed street sign at the site itself. Fred Harris’s family, including his daughter, son, grandson, and others, flew in from across the country to attend the special event. His grandson and son, Fred Harris the Third and DeShaun Lyons, gave reflective, passionate speeches as did various local religious leaders, reminding us of their own relationships and work in organizing locally alongside Fred Harris.

While remembering the past, questions pertaining to the future simultaneously arose. Panelists included DeShaun Lyons, Fred Harris the Third, Dr. Pamela Monk Kelley, Marcella Monk Flake, and his daughter, Vanessa Harris, who recalled the instance where the national guard was deployed in and around the Hill neighborhood to mitigate the 1967 riot: tear gas was sprayed in her family's home and flood lights reflected through each window. She connected this frightful instance to the ongoing militarization and brutality currently going on in Washington, D.C. To prevent history from repeating, the panelists explained the need for individuals to assert themselves and advocate for a better future, rather than staying compliant. Furthermore, they stressed the importance of investing in the young children of New Haven, considering it will be their generation continuing the necessary fight.  

The Anti-Eugenics Collective at Yale and other research projects affiliated with CHL were invited to participate in the Open House, sharing the strategies, projects, and initiatives we have undertaken or continue to work on. Our mission is to work towards a historical practice and analysis that continues to inform the present – and we are excited to continue this work with our partners at CHL.

AECY member Hanifah talks about our Collective’s work with guests attending the Open House. Photograph taken by Jaylen Moment. 09/13/2025.