A stampede of hundreds of people by a rain of dollar bills, allegedly thrown by U.S. rapper 6ix9ine from a luxury hotel in Havana, is generating widespread controversy in Cuba.
Images of the bill throwing on social networks show a large crowd of people, mostly young people, running and pushing each other for the bills, looking up and among a great shouting, on Paseo del Prado Avenue.
According to the first versions, the New York artist 6ix9ine threw bills of up to 100 dollars from the terrace of the Grand Packard Hotel on Thursday afternoon, a usual practice of the rapper, known for his eccentric lifestyle.
VIDEO | Polémica ‘lluvia’ de dólares en La Habana (Cuba), donde cientos de jóvenes se agolparon en la calle este jueves para recoger billetes.
— EFE Noticias (@EFEnoticias) February 17, 2023
Las primeras versiones apuntan al rapero 6ix9ine como responsable. En la prensa oficial de la isla se reprocha su actitud. pic.twitter.com/WUZAKVwEBc
Police were soon on the scene to try to restore order. No injuries or property damage have been reported so far.
The chaos caused even reached the island’s official press. In a published article, Randy Alonso Falcón, director of the Cubadebate website, criticized the rapper’s attitude.
“Not even if Elvis Presley himself were resurrected could he come to Havana to put on these humiliating shows. If he wants to be generous with his money, there are other ways and purposes”, he wrote.
It is not confirmed if 6ix9ine, with a criminal record for male violence and a conviction for abuse of a 13-year-old minor in 2015, was the one who threw the bills.
On Instagram, the artist wrote in a video that a person “dressed like him,” although in an earlier recording, also shared on his profile, he shows the crowd from his hotel room.
Cuba is going through a deep economic crisis, aggravated by the pandemic, U.S. sanctions and mistakes in government management, which translates into shortages, long lines for basic goods and rampant inflation.
The average salary of Cubans is below US$30 per month.
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