00:00You know, the topics in the United States, the Haitian community is celebrating the return of the nation to the
00:06FIFA World Cup after 50 years.
00:08However, the high prices and restrictions for participating in the event make it very difficult.
00:13Our correspondent Dan Albright has the latest news.
00:20Here in Mattapan, Haiti's return to the Men's World Cup is already visible in storefronts, flags, shirts,
00:28and the pride of one of Massachusetts' largest Haitian communities.
00:33On Saturday, June 13th, Haiti plays Scotland at Gillette Stadium, Boston's first World Cup match,
00:41one of the first hosted in the United States, and Haiti's first Men's World Cup appearance in more than 50
00:47years.
00:47For Haitian fans here, this is a historic moment, but it is also exposing the contradictions of a World Cup
00:55built around luxury prices, police, boarders, and billionaires.
00:59I would love to go to the game, but I know fulfilling this for the community would be a much
01:05more fulfilling experience for me, myself.
01:08Yeah.
01:08Many people can't afford to be a part of it, and so that's why understanding that was why we thought
01:14it would be a great idea for us to be able to put on a community game.
01:18Yonel and his organization, Mattapan Main Streets, are organizing a community celebration here in Almonte Park, the day of the
01:25match.
01:26But Yonel told me they could not get a permit to stay in the park after dark,
01:30so they won't actually be able to watch Haiti's 9 p.m. kickoff together here.
01:35And for many fans, the official celebration inside Gillette is out of reach.
01:41661.
01:42Wow.
01:42So, at least from the first page here.
01:45Recent resale listings for Haiti vs. Scotland have been starting around $600 before transportation, parking, or food.
01:53Boston does have a free fan festival at City Hall Plaza, but entry requires advanced registration and is not guaranteed.
02:01New York created $50 resident tickets with free transportation, but Boston has announced no comparable plan.
02:07The public money is easier to find for security.
02:10Foxborough demanded $7.8 million up front for World Cup policing and emergency costs.
02:17But Pierre Robert-Aretis of the Haitian Immigrant Family Services Institute in Mattapan
02:22told me nothing could stop him from celebrating with his community.
02:26That is a signal that we are sending to other countries that we are alive,
02:33and our flag will be here in the United States for a good reason.
02:38Trump imposed a travel ban on Haiti, keeping Haitian nationals from attending these historic matches in the U.S.
02:45His administration also put in jeopardy temporary protective status for Haitian immigrants.
02:50And on the campaign trail, Trump spread the racist, false claim that Haitian immigrants were eating cats and dogs.
02:57Rhetoric that Haitian community leaders warned put people in danger.
03:01The contradiction is bigger than one match, though.
03:05We are the first nation who break the slave chain.
03:11And at this time, since 2021, we don't have a president.
03:19Haitians live with a long record of U.S. occupation, intervention, destabilization,
03:24and disaster aid routed through foreign NGOs and contractors with little accountability.
03:30In the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, U.S. prosecutors said South Florida was a hub for planning and
03:37financing the plot.
03:39That's why some activists are going further.
03:41As we reported in April, the anti-fascist football coalition is calling for the games to be moved from the
03:48United States over its war crimes.
03:50But here in Mattapan, Haiti's return to the World Cup is being celebrated with joy, pride, and community.
03:57We are proud of our country. We are proud of our community.
04:01We are suffering together, and we will be alive together.
04:06The tournament surrounding it, though, tells a different story.
04:09The world's game turned into a gated spectacle where working-class immigrant communities are welcomed as culture but priced out,
04:18restricted, and policed as people.
04:21From Mattapan, I'm Dan Albright, Telesaur.
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