In October 2025, The Guardian sent a reporter and photographer to Leimert Park, Los Angeles to document what Desmond Carter has been building. What they found was a room full of Black men doing something rare: talking honestly about what they are carrying.

The resulting feature, written by Aaricka Washington with photographs by Julien James, explored why spaces like the Wellness Group matter, why Black men are underserved by traditional mental health systems, and what it looks like when a community decides to take care of itself.

It is one of the few national media features focused specifically on Black men and mental health in Los Angeles, and it centers the voices of the men in the room.