On April 29, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments challenging the Trump Administration’s attempts to terminate Temporary Protected Status for Haiti and Syria. One of the plaintiffs is Springfield resident Vilès Dorsainvil.
Since 2021, he’s lived in the Springfield community under TPS, founded the Haitian Support Center and serves as its executive director. Dorsainvil is also an active Moravian pastor. He talked with WYSO about his faith and how it’s influencing his choice to participate in this national lawsuit.
This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Vilès Dorsainvil: I think the Moravian has always been for justice, for inclusivity. We are one family in Christ. The Moravian always stood against racial discrimination or mistreatment of people based on their skin color or their country of origin. So the Moravian has been a denomination of justice and uphold human dignity. And I think that through my training with the Moravian, that normally compels me to stay in solidarity with the most vulnerable group of people.
Kathryn Mobley: Vilès, you've described Moravians as exercising a social biblical approach in their ministry and evangelism. What do you mean by that?
Dorsainvil: They would look to see what they should do in that particular area to serve the people. If there is no water, they would try to bring water. If there was no school, if there is an education, they would work on those first before building any church. If there is no development, they would work with those first. So this is why when you go to a Moravian facility or Moravian campus, you would see that the church is attached to other social things like school and they believe in helping human beings to attend their potential. This is how they see bringing folks to Christ through social work.
Mobley: You were trained in Jamaica and then returned to Haiti as a missionary. What were your duties?
Dorsainvil: I'm a young pastor, I went back home doing amazing with the church back home and my responsibility was to help churches to develop socialism. So by implementing good administration, good stewardship, helping the church, buying locations for themselves, help the young people to be self aware of who they are and their creativeness, they can be whatever they want to be as long as they put their mind to it and bring social projects that can help them to grow.
Mobley: In 2018, you left your family and home in Haiti. Why?
Dorsainvil: The hoodlums believe that I came back with money. In reality, the projects were financed by the Moravian church worldwide or the 'Unity', as they call it. Or I got sponsorship from other organizations.
The hoodlums send you letters asking you for money that you don't have. When you see that happens, you will be subject to kidnapping. So you have to make a choice. When my mother believed that I would be a target for kidnapping, she suggested I leave for my safety.
Mobley: In 2021, you came to the United States on Temporary Protected Status and settled in Springfield because you had a nephew who lived here. Early on, you say you witnessed other Temporary Protected Status-holding Haitian immigrants being taken advantage of, which ultimately motivated you to create the Haitian Support Center. Describe some of those situations.
Dorsainvil: I used to work in factories. I used to work in other places. It was painful to see a Haitian immigrant work seven days a week without resting and they used to give them a card where they paid them on that card. You would see the person coming the next day to say that they went to an ATM with a card. They don't get anything on it. When you ask what happened, they tell you they gave it to somebody to activate the card for them, but all of a sudden the money just gone. I saw how people skim folks to activate their debit card.
I witnessed folks in Springfield, they would need a ride to go to the laundromat and another person would come and have them pay a huge amount of money just to put them in a car and ride with them. And make them believe that the laundromat is so far. And when the person is getting used to the community, they realize that the laundromat was just around the corner.
Seeing folks coming and take double money from a Haitian immigrant for a room they rent and they keep raising direct price on them and everything and I say that has to stop. There should be somebody that keeps those folks accountable.
And this is the purpose of Haitian Support Center, place where Haitians would come, where they are not forced to speak English. There are people there to serve them, vulnerable people can come and get some services without any hesitation that something will happen to them.
Mobley: Vilès, I've interviewed several Haitians in Springfield who are in the United States on TPS just like you. Most of them say they want to return home to Haiti. Do you believe it's safe for people to go back?
Dorsainvil: Returning home is the desire, but no. The hoodlums are still in operation in Port-au-Prince, still controlling the capital city of Port-au-Prince and many other places in Haiti. And up to now, you know that the main international report has not been in operation for over a year now because of the impact of the gangs' violence.
They kidnapped folks in Haiti for various reasons. Sometimes for no reason at all. It's just for the pleasure or they just feel like kidnapping you or torture you. They just do that. And folks are still living where they do not have any access to clean water, medication or food. And the government isn't capable of helping people to meet those needs. I think it would be very dangerous for folks to go back home now.
Mobley: Is this why you believe Haiti’s TPS needs to be extended?
Dorsainvil: Yeah, so I am not sure that the government took time to do a judicial review of the situation like this before considering or before taking any decision.
Mobley: On April 29, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's attempt to terminate temporary protected status for Haiti and Syria. You intend to be in the audience. Why?
Dorsainvil: I just want to experience, first, how that will go, and I think this experience will help me to understand better how the judicial system works, and also be there as a community leader. I always tell folks that they don't have to worry too much for Haitians. Resilient is who we are. The natural disasters, all the shootings in Haiti, the kidnappings. You would believe that would break us. Now we are being folded to give the storm time to pass and after we rise again. They call Haitians the people who dare to live. When you dare to live, life does not like you. For some reason, you've been through a lot, but you dare to live
Mobley: We're now moving forward because the deliberation will potentially take a couple weeks to come down. What are your plans at the Support Center?
Dorsainvil: I believe in the sovereignty of God. I don't try to put God in a box, believing that it should be done the way I think it should done. I believe whatever God decides, if the justice is ruling our favor, that's because God wants them to do that. If they don't do that as well, I think God will plan to show us another way. I always tell that when people say, what's your plan? You cannot have a plan. When you cannot control the situation. You should have a plan, but it should be a smart plan. S is for specific, M is for measurable, A is for attainable, R is for realistic, and T for time-bound.
So how could I have a plan if it cannot be a smart plan? And if my plan cannot be specific because I have a status that is now in limbo, then my plan cannot be measurable. It cannot be realistic. It cannot be time-bound because we don't even know what will happen in July. At least you are stable. You have control of your environment. You have an idea what your future can look like. You can say, okay, now I can make a plan, but it's difficult to ask Haitians now what's their plan. Having a plan like this is not a plan. It's just like a dream.
Today we can be here. Tomorrow we're in another place, depending on how the situation unfolds.
