WEBVTT - Haiti: The World Cup’s Underdog 0:00:07.000 --> 0:00:11.080 Many decades ago. In nineteen seventy four, Haiti's soccer team 0:00:11.200 --> 0:00:15.560 pulled off a seemingly impossible feat. They qualified for the 0:00:15.600 --> 0:00:16.639 Men's World Cup. 0:00:16.920 --> 0:00:20.959 The Haitian sem wasn't that good. So hearing that once 0:00:21.040 --> 0:00:23.880 upon a time Haiti milled the walker was like what. 0:00:24.320 --> 0:00:27.320 Auns Cherry is thirty one and he's one of many 0:00:27.400 --> 0:00:31.200 Haitians for whom that giant achievement has become a sort 0:00:31.240 --> 0:00:35.600 of legend Haitian soccer lore. And never in his wildest 0:00:35.680 --> 0:00:37.800 dreams did he think it could happen again. 0:00:39.400 --> 0:00:44.040 Haiti haven't been there in more than five decades. That 0:00:44.080 --> 0:00:46.600 could end tonight if results go their way. 0:00:48.040 --> 0:00:51.879 But then, on November eighteenth, twenty twenty five, Haiti went 0:00:51.960 --> 0:00:55.520 up against Nicaragua. They played at a small stadium in 0:00:55.600 --> 0:00:59.320 the Caribbean island of Kurasau in front of fifteen hundred fans, 0:00:59.720 --> 0:01:04.480 With Compact Haiti's signature music blasting in the background. Haiti 0:01:04.640 --> 0:01:07.959 was one step away from returning to the world's biggest 0:01:07.959 --> 0:01:11.840 soccer stage. That night, Ans, who covers soccer for the 0:01:11.880 --> 0:01:14.680 Haitian Times, was at home in Haiti with his dad 0:01:14.720 --> 0:01:19.800 and his little brother, their eyes glued to the TV screen, nervous. 0:01:19.520 --> 0:01:22.880 And I remember telling to myself, what if Haiti doesn't qualify, 0:01:23.400 --> 0:01:26.200 like they made it this for they give us hope, 0:01:26.360 --> 0:01:29.959 like people are saying Haiti is chaotic, but if they qualify, 0:01:30.160 --> 0:01:31.560 teens are going to get better. 0:01:32.040 --> 0:01:34.959 Haiti have a really, really good chance, particularly if they 0:01:35.040 --> 0:01:37.000 win in this final game. 0:01:38.600 --> 0:01:40.759 A lot of that chaos that Ans is referring to 0:01:41.200 --> 0:01:44.720 was ignited in twenty twenty one after the assassination of 0:01:44.800 --> 0:01:49.040 Haitian President Jovonel Mois. Gang violence took over the country 0:01:49.280 --> 0:01:53.080 and it even affected soccer. The national team has had 0:01:53.120 --> 0:01:57.760 to train and play all of its games abroad, all 0:01:57.880 --> 0:01:59.800 of the games, even the home games. 0:02:00.000 --> 0:02:03.840 Wonderful support for Haiti hearing Curasau on the final night, 0:02:04.480 --> 0:02:07.559 so much on the line and so much that can happen. 0:02:08.000 --> 0:02:10.639 Guasau is an island five hundred miles south of Haiti, 0:02:10.919 --> 0:02:14.239 and still hundreds of Haitian fans made the trip across 0:02:14.280 --> 0:02:16.080 the Caribbean to support their team. 0:02:16.280 --> 0:02:22.800 Aren't cross the Prince Haiti have a step in at 0:02:22.880 --> 0:02:23.399 first time. 0:02:23.480 --> 0:02:24.440 Stuff it's time. 0:02:25.600 --> 0:02:28.000 By the time the ref blew the final whistle, the 0:02:28.040 --> 0:02:33.560 score was two zero. Haiti had won, but the Haitian 0:02:33.600 --> 0:02:36.680 players and fans couldn't celebrate just yet. 0:02:37.160 --> 0:02:40.079 You can see the Haitian players huddling up here. They 0:02:40.120 --> 0:02:41.440 know they've done their job. 0:02:41.960 --> 0:02:45.080 Yes they had won this game, but they still needed 0:02:45.080 --> 0:02:48.240 to wait on the score of another match happening at 0:02:48.240 --> 0:02:51.680 the same time. And that game was tied, which was 0:02:51.720 --> 0:02:54.799 good because if it stayed that way, the Haitian team 0:02:54.840 --> 0:02:58.160 would qualify for the World Cup. So while the players 0:02:58.200 --> 0:03:01.120 huddled around the coach for a few more for eternal minutes, 0:03:01.600 --> 0:03:02.960 the fans waited. 0:03:05.120 --> 0:03:08.239 All the Haitian supporters back home up sure as well 0:03:08.280 --> 0:03:11.560 all around the world are waiting here with faded brass. 0:03:12.240 --> 0:03:17.200 And then it's over Haiti and got the nose. 0:03:18.480 --> 0:03:21.680 It's of all the fifty plus years in the banking. 0:03:22.080 --> 0:03:23.160 I'm still couldn't believe it. 0:03:23.480 --> 0:03:26.680 Ans, his dad and his brother sat in their living 0:03:26.720 --> 0:03:29.640 room in shock. He says they're not the type of 0:03:29.680 --> 0:03:32.960 fans to have big reactions, but he remembers looking at 0:03:33.000 --> 0:03:35.520 his dad and saying, we made it. 0:03:35.840 --> 0:03:38.800 Watching the players run on the field with the flag 0:03:39.560 --> 0:03:41.640 was one of the best thing I've ever seen in 0:03:41.640 --> 0:03:44.960 my life. 0:03:45.000 --> 0:03:47.680 Some of the players sprinted toward the chain link fence 0:03:47.760 --> 0:03:51.040 separating them from the stands, and danced with their fans, 0:03:51.680 --> 0:03:55.680 fireworks going off in the background. Other Haitian players collapsed 0:03:55.720 --> 0:03:57.560 on the field and broke into tears. 0:03:57.920 --> 0:04:02.480 And Haiti, they're all the trial, through all the tribulations. 0:04:01.600 --> 0:04:03.000 That their country. 0:04:02.520 --> 0:04:06.760 Has gone through, that these players have gone through. Kaiti 0:04:07.040 --> 0:04:10.600 well played at the twenty twenty six feet for World Cup. 0:04:10.880 --> 0:04:16.480 It's the stop of football Dreams. 0:04:17.560 --> 0:04:22.160 From Futuru Studios am Fernande Chabarri and this is American Football, 0:04:22.640 --> 0:04:25.120 a show about soccer culture in the US and its 0:04:25.200 --> 0:04:30.240 underdog roots. In every sport, there are always stories about underdogs. 0:04:30.640 --> 0:04:33.679 There are teams and players who go through such insurmountable 0:04:33.720 --> 0:04:37.440 odds that you just can't help but love them, the 0:04:37.520 --> 0:04:41.040 kind of stories that make for great Hollywood films. In 0:04:41.080 --> 0:04:50.240 this World Cup, that team is Haiti. This is a 0:04:50.279 --> 0:04:53.080 story about a country and a people who have dealt 0:04:53.120 --> 0:04:57.200 with turmoil at home and who've been maligned abroad. And 0:04:57.240 --> 0:05:00.320 that's all on top of their struggle to qualify for 0:05:00.440 --> 0:05:03.919 this year's World Cup. And we'll also look at Haiti's 0:05:04.000 --> 0:05:07.960 journey beyond this epic qualification as Haitian fans at home 0:05:08.040 --> 0:05:11.760 and abroad navigate through a wave of anti immigrants, sentiment 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:15.719 and hostile policies coming from the main World Cup host, 0:05:16.120 --> 0:05:20.480 the United States. I'm going to let our producer, Andreskavajerro 0:05:20.680 --> 0:05:21.320 take it from here. 0:05:29.080 --> 0:05:33.040 Cool, so we're recording. Could you tell me where you 0:05:33.080 --> 0:05:34.240 are right now? 0:05:34.880 --> 0:05:39.279 I mean capysin right now. It's Friday afternoon, so school 0:05:39.400 --> 0:05:39.760 is over. 0:05:40.320 --> 0:05:44.800 Ouns Cherry is based in Kapai, Sian, Haiti's second biggest city, 0:05:45.640 --> 0:05:48.360 and I will say getting him in a quiet room 0:05:48.440 --> 0:05:51.200 to record this interview was pretty much impossible. 0:05:51.640 --> 0:05:53.680 It's a little busy outside with the traffic. 0:05:53.920 --> 0:05:57.279 There's a lot of people getting ready to start the weekend. 0:05:57.560 --> 0:06:00.760 Ones writes about soccer for The Haitian Times, a Brooklyn 0:06:00.800 --> 0:06:03.880 based paper that covers the Haitian diaspora around the world. 0:06:04.240 --> 0:06:07.240 I love the game, I love doing analysis. I love 0:06:07.320 --> 0:06:08.520 telling soccer stories. 0:06:08.880 --> 0:06:12.440 He also plays, watches and breathes soccer. 0:06:12.760 --> 0:06:17.360 If I have any problem anton expressing me out, you're 0:06:17.360 --> 0:06:19.320 gonna find me on a soccer field, even if it's 0:06:19.320 --> 0:06:22.240 by myself or playing pickup game, You're gonna find me there. 0:06:22.880 --> 0:06:25.200 Owns has lived in Haiti for the past few years, 0:06:25.320 --> 0:06:27.240 but he spent a big part of his life in 0:06:27.279 --> 0:06:29.919 New York. He moved there when he was twelve with 0:06:30.000 --> 0:06:33.400 his parents and two sisters. His parents were looking for 0:06:33.440 --> 0:06:35.880 better schools, better jobs. 0:06:35.680 --> 0:06:39.440 And also for a safety because around the time when 0:06:39.480 --> 0:06:41.839 we moved two thousand and seven, two thousand and eight, 0:06:42.640 --> 0:06:44.720 that's when I want to say, heyy started to get 0:06:44.720 --> 0:06:45.960 a little hectic. 0:06:46.400 --> 0:06:49.479 Two thousand and eight started off with promise. Security in 0:06:49.520 --> 0:06:52.840 Haiti had much improved, but the period of calm was 0:06:52.920 --> 0:06:53.599 short lived. 0:06:55.800 --> 0:06:58.760 Owns grew to become a journalist, and in twenty twenty 0:06:58.800 --> 0:07:01.520 one he was living in where he was covering the 0:07:01.600 --> 0:07:04.800 largest Haitian community in the US for The Haitian Times. 0:07:05.320 --> 0:07:08.400 One day his phone started going off in the middle 0:07:08.400 --> 0:07:09.000 of the night. 0:07:09.160 --> 0:07:12.320 And I was sleeping. I remember the exact time, probably 0:07:12.320 --> 0:07:13.480 around two in the morning. 0:07:13.840 --> 0:07:16.400 It was the co founder of the paper he worked for, and. 0:07:16.320 --> 0:07:19.080 I'm like, why is he calling me at that time? 0:07:20.320 --> 0:07:22.520 And when I picked up, I don't even remember him 0:07:22.520 --> 0:07:26.880 saying how you you went slip to the point Jovna 0:07:26.920 --> 0:07:28.600 Mooi's the president got assassinated. 0:07:31.240 --> 0:07:34.160 We bring you some breaking news now and Haiti's president, 0:07:34.240 --> 0:07:38.280 Jovenel Moyes has been assassinated at his home in Porta. 0:07:38.320 --> 0:07:39.840 Prince they shot the president. 0:07:40.120 --> 0:07:42.560 My sources have been firmed that he is in fact dead, 0:07:42.880 --> 0:07:47.760 a crime plunging an already unstable country into even further disarray. 0:07:48.640 --> 0:07:52.239 I felt hopeless because this is the president, the most 0:07:52.600 --> 0:07:55.560 important person in the country, I want to say, getting 0:07:55.600 --> 0:07:58.560 shot in his bedroom. So that really showed me how 0:07:58.920 --> 0:08:00.800 in a way of that can happen to the president, 0:08:00.840 --> 0:08:02.560 you know, if the president's not even said, where's this 0:08:02.600 --> 0:08:03.280 country canna go? 0:08:03.560 --> 0:08:05.200 So it was really heavy on my heart. 0:08:05.640 --> 0:08:10.120 During the months after the president's assassination, things only got worse. 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:14.520 Since the killing, the already fragile economic and political situation 0:08:14.640 --> 0:08:18.280 and the country fell deeper to dysfunction as gangs took 0:08:18.320 --> 0:08:21.720 over large parts of the capitol. Thousands of people have 0:08:21.800 --> 0:08:24.280 been killed, tortured, or forced to leave. 0:08:24.560 --> 0:08:28.040 That's when gangs really started to you know, kick people 0:08:28.080 --> 0:08:29.760 out their houses. 0:08:29.520 --> 0:08:30.760 Burn people homes. 0:08:31.680 --> 0:08:33.480 There was a period every week all so there was 0:08:33.559 --> 0:08:36.800 you know, thousands of people leaving their homes because this 0:08:36.960 --> 0:08:39.440 gang member is attacking their city now, and then the 0:08:39.520 --> 0:08:43.160 next week it's another city. So that's how it was 0:08:43.160 --> 0:08:45.320 for the next two three years. I want to say, 0:08:45.440 --> 0:08:47.360 after you got assassinated. 0:08:47.360 --> 0:08:51.080 Soon the unrest started to have an impact on sports competitions, 0:08:51.440 --> 0:08:59.240 the local league teams and on Haiti's national soccer team. 0:08:57.320 --> 0:08:58.840 At that point of even think the league was in 0:08:58.920 --> 0:09:00.960 function because of the game and photoquants. 0:09:01.240 --> 0:09:04.720 In July twenty twenty one, the month the president was murdered, 0:09:05.360 --> 0:09:08.120 was the last time Haiti got to play an international 0:09:08.160 --> 0:09:11.200 match on its home soil. They've had to train and 0:09:11.320 --> 0:09:15.199 play all of their home games abroad in places like Gurassau, 0:09:15.840 --> 0:09:19.959 five hundred miles away across the sea. Their coach, French 0:09:20.040 --> 0:09:23.720 national Sebastien Migne, has never even set foot in Haiti 0:09:23.880 --> 0:09:27.040 since taken the job in twenty twenty four. Not being 0:09:27.040 --> 0:09:30.360 able to play games at home, especially the World Cup qualifiers, 0:09:30.800 --> 0:09:34.720 puts any team in a disadvantage, even the best. There's 0:09:34.800 --> 0:09:38.679 actual research behind home advantage and the impact of playing 0:09:38.760 --> 0:09:42.200 in front of your fans. For Onuns, the idea of 0:09:42.240 --> 0:09:44.920 witnessing a game in Haiti feels like a thing of 0:09:44.960 --> 0:09:48.000 the past, a thing of memories, like the time his 0:09:48.160 --> 0:09:50.000 uncle took him to a local league game. 0:09:50.320 --> 0:09:53.360 How was eleven back then, and I was like, wow, 0:09:53.400 --> 0:09:54.200 this is intense. 0:09:54.520 --> 0:09:58.680 The fans were hardcore on seys. It was rowdy and alive. 0:09:58.920 --> 0:10:00.640 I was like I like this, even though this is 0:10:00.720 --> 0:10:03.200 very odd called Aidi Kursen. I really love this. 0:10:03.640 --> 0:10:06.680 But today that feeling of a home game is more 0:10:06.760 --> 0:10:07.760 distant than ever. 0:10:08.160 --> 0:10:10.959 So definitely I got from watching Haitian players playing in 0:10:11.040 --> 0:10:14.800 a small field in Haiti with Haitian fans. I haven't 0:10:14.800 --> 0:10:17.080 got that in a while, and as we port it. Also, 0:10:17.280 --> 0:10:19.559 I can't say that I covered the Haitian soccer team 0:10:19.800 --> 0:10:23.760 in Haiti. It breaks my hole, and not only as 0:10:23.800 --> 0:10:26.000 a reportable, also as a as a Sacca fan. 0:10:26.600 --> 0:10:29.720 In twenty twenty four, as the World Cup qualifiers began, 0:10:30.280 --> 0:10:33.240 Haiti was number eighty six out of two hundred eleven 0:10:33.320 --> 0:10:36.880 countries in the FIFA ranking. So while FIFA expanded the 0:10:36.920 --> 0:10:40.080 number of participating nations to forty eight teams for this 0:10:40.200 --> 0:10:43.840 World Cup, the odds were still not in their favor. 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:52.240 Haiti's journey to the World Cup twenty twenty six was 0:10:52.320 --> 0:10:56.199 long and at first it looked like another dead end 0:10:56.280 --> 0:10:57.200 qualify around. 0:10:57.600 --> 0:11:00.000 So we play against team that weren't that strong. 0:11:00.720 --> 0:11:04.200 Obviously we beat them, but the level wasn't there and 0:11:04.800 --> 0:11:06.079 I didn't see us qualifying. 0:11:06.520 --> 0:11:10.400 One of the problems Haiti had was that most players 0:11:10.400 --> 0:11:13.360 on the national team live and play abroad. 0:11:13.880 --> 0:11:17.439 The Haitian league it is competitive, they play very very odd, 0:11:17.480 --> 0:11:21.120 you know, but it's not the highest level. I mean, 0:11:21.160 --> 0:11:24.680 the Haitian league wasn't even functioning for two three years. 0:11:24.679 --> 0:11:26.160 So how do you get players from Haiti? 0:11:26.200 --> 0:11:26.400 You know? 0:11:27.120 --> 0:11:29.480 So that's why we get most players from the diaspa, 0:11:29.520 --> 0:11:32.200 because the league's are better there. 0:11:32.800 --> 0:11:36.240 But the coach and the Haitian Soccer Federation needed a 0:11:36.280 --> 0:11:39.840 winning team, or at least a team that stood a chance, 0:11:40.520 --> 0:11:43.160 so they drafted players who were in the big leagues 0:11:43.160 --> 0:11:49.120 in Europe, players like John Rickner, Bellinguard Brilliance who played 0:11:49.160 --> 0:11:52.440 in the English Premier League. That's very little. It's a 0:11:52.559 --> 0:11:57.480 super strike from Sean Ricknerpeljar and Jsue Casimir who was 0:11:57.480 --> 0:12:09.080 playing in France's top division. That's when fans started to 0:12:09.160 --> 0:12:10.480 sense something different. 0:12:10.800 --> 0:12:11.680 This craziest scene. 0:12:11.720 --> 0:12:15.520 How a player from the high level can change a team. 0:12:15.720 --> 0:12:17.720 They changed how Haiti played completely. 0:12:18.360 --> 0:12:21.120 So with a new squad stacked with players from the 0:12:21.120 --> 0:12:25.600 Haitian diaspora thriving in the big leagues abroad, things really 0:12:25.640 --> 0:12:31.400 started coming together. Fans were starting to believe. Then out 0:12:31.400 --> 0:12:34.880 of nowhere, with just a few games left in the qualifiers. 0:12:35.280 --> 0:12:38.400 News broke about a new roadblock for the team, but 0:12:38.480 --> 0:12:40.520 even more so for their supporters. 0:12:40.760 --> 0:12:44.080 President Donald Trump has signed a new travel band that 0:12:44.200 --> 0:12:47.600 will block people from several countries from traveling to the 0:12:47.679 --> 0:12:51.240 United States. Haiti is one of the twelve countries seeing 0:12:51.320 --> 0:12:52.120 this full band. 0:12:52.120 --> 0:12:54.920 At midnight, a new band on travelers from mostly African, 0:12:55.000 --> 0:12:58.120 Asian and Caribbean countries goes into effect. 0:13:00.360 --> 0:13:04.440 An unprecedented visa ban and a court battle. Stay with us, 0:13:04.559 --> 0:13:19.680 We'll be right back. Hey, We're back with American Football 0:13:19.880 --> 0:13:23.760 and Fernande Charalary, our producer and Ris Cavaguerro is going 0:13:23.800 --> 0:13:26.600 to take us back into the World Cup qualifiers. When 0:13:26.640 --> 0:13:32.280 Haiti started winning and fans started dreaming, Haiti. 0:13:31.960 --> 0:13:36.240 Had momentum, they were winning their games. Everything was looking up. 0:13:36.920 --> 0:13:40.080 And then in June twenty twenty five, with just a 0:13:40.160 --> 0:13:43.720 few games left in the World Cup qualifiers, some breaking 0:13:43.800 --> 0:13:45.320 news came out of the US. 0:13:45.840 --> 0:13:48.720 The presidents that are starting Monday at midnight, he's blocking 0:13:48.720 --> 0:13:53.040 people from twelve countries entering the US, citing national security concerns, 0:13:53.280 --> 0:13:56.439 a dramatic escalation in his immigration crackdown, and. 0:13:56.440 --> 0:13:58.880 We want to keep bad people out of our country. 0:13:59.200 --> 0:14:02.040 The band includes countries mainly in Africa and the Middle East, 0:14:02.240 --> 0:14:05.360 among them Afghanistan, Haiti, Iran, and Yemen. 0:14:05.800 --> 0:14:08.720 Five months after the US announced the mass travel band, 0:14:09.320 --> 0:14:13.480 Haiti played its final qualifier against Nicaragua and secured their 0:14:13.520 --> 0:14:14.640 spot at the World Cup. 0:14:15.080 --> 0:14:18.560 Haitian soccer fans are celebrating today after the Caribbean nation 0:14:18.760 --> 0:14:20.280 qualified for the World Cup. 0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:23.000 A welcome break from all the bad news for Haitians 0:14:23.120 --> 0:14:25.720 living at home and in the United States. 0:14:25.960 --> 0:14:28.280 I don't have no word last night, I can I 0:14:28.320 --> 0:14:28.960 even sleep. 0:14:29.440 --> 0:14:33.760 It's like a gym come too far for us to 0:14:33.800 --> 0:14:36.960 be in the World Cup this year is a blessing 0:14:37.800 --> 0:14:41.560 and you know what, Hopefully it will put us back 0:14:41.600 --> 0:14:43.680 in a map because we do know about soccer. 0:14:45.960 --> 0:14:49.760 During the past year, President Trump has issued visa restrictions 0:14:49.800 --> 0:14:54.040 for citizens of forty countries quote to protect the security 0:14:54.080 --> 0:14:59.720 of the United States close quote. Four of those countries, Haiti, Iran, 0:15:00.160 --> 0:15:04.280 Ivory Coast, and Senegal qualified to the World Cup. Even 0:15:04.280 --> 0:15:07.960 though FIFA has promised that quote fans from all over 0:15:08.000 --> 0:15:11.640 the world will be welcome, the US government said that 0:15:11.760 --> 0:15:16.840 only players, immediate family and team staff would be exempted 0:15:16.880 --> 0:15:20.600 from the ban. Fans from the four countries affected would 0:15:20.600 --> 0:15:22.640 not be allowed in the United States. 0:15:23.000 --> 0:15:26.080 You just feeling sad for people could get affected by 0:15:26.120 --> 0:15:26.600 this van. 0:15:26.920 --> 0:15:29.640 Even if you're one of the privilegedations who can afford 0:15:29.680 --> 0:15:34.000 travel and those exorbitantly expensive World Cup tickets, you're out 0:15:34.040 --> 0:15:34.400 of luck. 0:15:34.760 --> 0:15:37.240 Let's say a wealthy man wanted to travel to the 0:15:37.360 --> 0:15:39.080 US to watch Haiti plate. 0:15:39.160 --> 0:15:40.800 He's not going to be able to do that. 0:15:41.160 --> 0:15:43.920 And the thing is, these policies coming from the White House, 0:15:44.280 --> 0:15:47.000 they could have an impact on the immigrants in the 0:15:47.120 --> 0:15:49.680 US who might want to go to a World Cup game. 0:15:51.360 --> 0:15:55.000 Let me explain. There are about one million Haitian immigrants 0:15:55.080 --> 0:15:58.080 in the US. More than three hundred thousand of them 0:15:58.480 --> 0:16:02.200 arrived after the devastating twenty ten earthquake under what is 0:16:02.240 --> 0:16:07.160 known as Temporary Protected status, or TPS. It basically means 0:16:07.240 --> 0:16:10.200 they can live in the country legally. But in twenty 0:16:10.240 --> 0:16:14.920 twenty five, the Trump administration announced it would end TPS 0:16:15.040 --> 0:16:15.680 for Haitians. 0:16:16.040 --> 0:16:18.280 The order means that more than three hundred thousand Haitians 0:16:18.360 --> 0:16:21.400 now living here could face deportation in a little over 0:16:21.480 --> 0:16:22.160 two months. 0:16:22.200 --> 0:16:26.920 And this wasn't Trump's first attempt at ending TPS. Trump 0:16:27.080 --> 0:16:30.160 tried to end protections for Haitians during his first term 0:16:30.360 --> 0:16:33.720 in twenty eighteen, but that process was blocked by the 0:16:33.720 --> 0:16:37.280 courts installed before it got to the Supreme Court. Then, 0:16:37.600 --> 0:16:40.600 during a presidential debate for his twenty twenty four campaign, 0:16:41.200 --> 0:16:46.160 Trump singled out the Haitian community, amplifying debunked accusations that 0:16:46.240 --> 0:16:49.480 were so vile and outrageous. I'm not going to repeat 0:16:49.520 --> 0:16:50.520 them here verbatim. 0:16:53.960 --> 0:16:55.000 It was fake news. 0:16:55.040 --> 0:16:58.760 Basically, if you take about it, if you'll plan to 0:16:58.760 --> 0:17:03.480 get more voted to lie about all hate on Haitians, it. 0:17:03.560 --> 0:17:05.080 Shows how crude the world is. 0:17:06.440 --> 0:17:08.600 And you probably did get some movels because of the 0:17:08.600 --> 0:17:10.240 study was saying about Haitians. 0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:14.760 Last February, right before TPS was set to end for Haitians, 0:17:15.040 --> 0:17:20.240 a Columbia District court stayed determination temporarily, which means that 0:17:20.280 --> 0:17:23.320 the US Supreme Court will have to make the final decision, 0:17:24.040 --> 0:17:27.320 and that decision is expected to happen this summer in 0:17:27.400 --> 0:17:30.960 the middle of the World Cup. This raises a lot 0:17:30.960 --> 0:17:33.800 of questions for the Haitian diaspora, who are trying to 0:17:33.840 --> 0:17:37.080 decide whether to attend the Haiti match or just play 0:17:37.119 --> 0:17:38.840 it safe and watch them at home. 0:17:39.440 --> 0:17:42.399 Some Haitians in the US they're probably not gonna risk 0:17:42.480 --> 0:17:46.480 it because there was news about Ice being at World 0:17:46.480 --> 0:17:49.639 Cup games, which sucks because they're there in the US 0:17:49.760 --> 0:17:52.280 and den I able to go to a soccer game, 0:17:52.720 --> 0:17:58.080 which really breaks my heart. So not being able to 0:17:58.280 --> 0:18:03.080 enjoy it properly like other countries, it really sucks, and 0:18:03.119 --> 0:18:06.640 it makes me think that you know, why always us. 0:18:10.600 --> 0:18:15.160 After the break Hans gets to do when he never imagined. 0:18:16.280 --> 0:18:42.320 We'll be right back. Hey, we're back. I'm Fernande Chavarri 0:18:42.520 --> 0:18:46.719 and this is American football. Let's wrap up our story 0:18:46.800 --> 0:18:49.960 about Haiti's long journey to the World Cup with producer 0:18:50.119 --> 0:18:51.119 Andres Cavaliero. 0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:55.240 Since qualifying thanks to the players they had called up 0:18:55.280 --> 0:18:58.600 from the European leagues who transformed the team, there have 0:18:58.760 --> 0:19:02.680 been new developments. A few months ago, rumors about other 0:19:02.800 --> 0:19:06.560 Haitian diaspora players joining the team began making the rounds. 0:19:06.920 --> 0:19:08.639 They can't pick him up, but I can't fight. 0:19:10.800 --> 0:19:16.560 All s sales et Hawsavans. 0:19:17.280 --> 0:19:20.960 One of them was English Premier League striker Wilson Isidor 0:19:21.160 --> 0:19:25.000 who plays for Sunderland. Isidor was born in France to 0:19:25.119 --> 0:19:29.040 Haitian and Malagassi parents. At one point he even played 0:19:29.040 --> 0:19:32.320 for the French national youth team. As soon as fans 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:34.199 found out that he had been invited to join the 0:19:34.200 --> 0:19:38.359 Haitian squad, they took to social media and began campaigning 0:19:38.359 --> 0:19:41.400 for him to come on board, and eventually he did. 0:19:44.440 --> 0:19:47.520 In a video posted on Facebook by the Haitian Soccer Federation, 0:19:48.240 --> 0:19:51.760 he told the fans in Creole, you asked for me, 0:19:52.359 --> 0:19:56.439 you believed in me, you waited for me. Today I 0:19:56.520 --> 0:20:00.960 come to tell you here I am. And this is 0:20:01.000 --> 0:20:04.440 a big deal because once easy Door plays for Haiti 0:20:04.600 --> 0:20:08.320 in this World Cup, he would forego his eligibility to 0:20:08.440 --> 0:20:12.160 ever play for France again. The fact easy Door could 0:20:12.160 --> 0:20:15.120 potentially play for France but is willing to go all 0:20:15.119 --> 0:20:18.440 in on Haiti says something about what this World Cup 0:20:18.520 --> 0:20:20.920 means for superstar players like him. 0:20:21.280 --> 0:20:23.240 So I want to say this is probably the best 0:20:23.680 --> 0:20:26.080 Haitian tim we've seen in years. 0:20:26.760 --> 0:20:30.119 Despite all this hype, Haiti is still seen as the 0:20:30.359 --> 0:20:33.520 underdog when it comes to the forty eight countries competing 0:20:33.600 --> 0:20:34.520 in this World Cup. 0:20:34.920 --> 0:20:38.359 Most websites they put us last or second to last 0:20:38.400 --> 0:20:41.320 when they're doing their rankings. Well, I think we're gonna 0:20:41.320 --> 0:20:44.240 surprise people. I'm not gonna say we're gonna beat Brazil, 0:20:45.080 --> 0:20:47.399 but I see us giving Brazil or one for the money. 0:20:47.920 --> 0:20:51.800 It's the perfect story for fifas pr Machine, except for 0:20:51.840 --> 0:20:54.560 the fact that most Haitians will not be welcomed. 0:20:55.119 --> 0:20:57.960 I want us to surprise the world. I want to 0:20:58.000 --> 0:21:00.439 show to what that we can't play soccer too, That's what. 0:21:00.560 --> 0:21:01.120 I want to see. 0:21:01.480 --> 0:21:04.159 Lucky for Aunts, he not only covers soccer for the 0:21:04.160 --> 0:21:07.959 Haitian Times, but he is also a US citizen, So 0:21:08.359 --> 0:21:11.439 as soon as it was confirmed that Haiti qualified. 0:21:11.200 --> 0:21:14.800 It wasn't even a question. I remember telling my ya 0:21:14.920 --> 0:21:16.080 that Masu case is ready. 0:21:17.040 --> 0:21:20.120 Yes, owns will be working. But this is also going 0:21:20.160 --> 0:21:22.080 to be the first time he gets to watch the 0:21:22.119 --> 0:21:26.440 Haitian national team play live, and not just in any 0:21:26.520 --> 0:21:28.240 game in the World Cup. 0:21:29.040 --> 0:21:33.520 Watching Haiti, you know, in person, it's probably going to 0:21:33.560 --> 0:21:35.240 be my sweetest minimile as a soccer. 0:21:35.080 --> 0:21:40.920 Fan, and in the context of the current situation for Haitians, 0:21:41.640 --> 0:21:46.000 Onnz is taking his privilege very seriously. He says he 0:21:46.040 --> 0:21:48.800 will walk into each of those stadiums on behalf of 0:21:48.880 --> 0:21:53.359 all Haitians, those who feel hopeless about what's happening at home, 0:21:54.160 --> 0:21:56.280 those in the US who are feeling the weight of 0:21:56.359 --> 0:21:58.080 harsh anti immigrant policies. 0:21:58.840 --> 0:22:02.040 As a Haitian put it second on the side. It 0:22:02.119 --> 0:22:05.880 shows that, you know, we're still able. People are struggling 0:22:05.920 --> 0:22:09.240 to eat, we have immigration issues. People can even go 0:22:09.280 --> 0:22:11.920 to games will still have the biggest stage. 0:22:11.920 --> 0:22:16.119 And Haitians in the US will gather whether they decide 0:22:16.160 --> 0:22:19.320 to risk attending the games or watch from home or 0:22:19.359 --> 0:22:22.200 maybe from a bar in Philly, Miami, New York. 0:22:22.400 --> 0:22:25.640 Even though that country that has always struggling, even though 0:22:25.800 --> 0:22:28.680 that poorest country in the West amis fail, we can 0:22:28.760 --> 0:22:32.879 still do stuff all countries can do, you know, So 0:22:32.880 --> 0:22:34.000 so me the acting is. 0:22:35.320 --> 0:22:40.040 Everything, Mons says. It's the kind of defiant joy that 0:22:40.200 --> 0:22:42.679 starts with soccer but transcends it. 0:22:45.760 --> 0:22:49.880 That was producer andresk Caballerro, who, like me, is going 0:22:49.960 --> 0:23:10.280 to be watching Haiti's first game. American Football is produced 0:23:10.280 --> 0:23:14.320 by Futuro Studios in collaboration with Iheart's Mike Wultura podcast 0:23:14.359 --> 0:23:18.560 network I'm Your host Fernande Chavarri. This episode was produced 0:23:18.560 --> 0:23:22.160 by Andres Cavadiero with additional production from Levi Sharp. Our 0:23:22.200 --> 0:23:26.240 senior editor is Rebec Gaibarra. Fact checking by Roxanna Guire 0:23:26.520 --> 0:23:30.840 mixing by Brendon Krugel at Multitude Productions, additional help from 0:23:30.920 --> 0:23:35.280 Laura Wagner. Victoria Strada is our production manager. Legal review 0:23:35.320 --> 0:23:39.160 by Jonathan Fisher at Fisher Legal Arts. Our executive producers 0:23:39.200 --> 0:23:43.040 are Marlon Bishop and Maria Garcia at Putua Studios. Executive 0:23:43.040 --> 0:23:46.840 producers at iHeart are Leo Gomes and Arlene Santana. Futura 0:23:46.960 --> 0:23:50.200 Media was founded by Marie no Rosa. If you like 0:23:50.280 --> 0:23:53.720