Attendees will learn Haitian history from historian Bayyinah Bello and watch performances from artist Souzen, Haitian DJ Michael Brun and singer J. Perry. There will also be youth folklore dance performances.
Dorsainvil said the event will be “a moment for folks to be exposed to who we are as individuals and the culture” of Haiti and its history.
“To me at least the people have a chance just to hear our history, because from what I understood is that people do not really know us here,” Dorsainvil said. “Some folks that I speak with have even asked me questions, where is Haiti located ... I said to my team, ‘It seems that we need to throw up a program like this to educate people about our culture.”
The Haitian community has been subject to attacks both locally and nationally, including in September when now-President Donald Trump and others spread falsehoods that Haitians in Springfield were eating people’s pets.
Haitians are now waiting as immigration actions from the Trump administration loom. On April 24, legal protections for many immigrants who came to the U.S. since October 2022 via parole programs will be revoked. This includes Haitians who did not also get Temporary Protected Status.
TPS for Haitians will expire in August instead of the originally-planned expiration in February 2026. This will turn the roughly 520,000 Haitians legally in the United States into immigrants living here illegally.
“People just do not know what the future will hold, but the thing is, whatever happens, I would like the Springfielders or the community or any Americans who might be interested to know more about us, about the history of Haiti, the culture, the cuisine,” Dorsainvil said.
How to attend
Tickets can be purchased at our.show/signatureevent2025. The event is at 6 p.m. May 3 at The John Legend Theater, 700 S. Limestone St.
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