Bad Bunny calls attention to the killing of a transgender woman
Reggaeton superstar Bad Bunny used his appearance Thursday on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" to call attention to the killing of a homeless transgender woman in Puerto Rico. The Puerto Rican artist wore a white T-shirt with the words "They killed Alexa, not a man in a skirt," emblazoned in Spanish — a reference to Alexa Negrón Luciano, who was shot to death earlier this week.
Bad Bunny, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, has been vocal about issues impacting Puerto Rico in the past. He used his performance on "The Tonight Show" to bring awareness to Alexa's shooting death while singing his new song, "Ignorantes." In the days after her murder, news headlines in Puerto Rico referred to Alexa as "a man in a skirt."
During his act with fellow reggaeton artist Sech, Bad Bunny took off his jacket to reveal the message on his T-shirt about Alexa.
The context behind the why #HerNameWasAlexa https://t.co/Aihu3h8cWs pic.twitter.com/N8DsZyZpDG
— David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) February 28, 2020
A cellphone video circulating online from earlier this week showed Alexa walking as a pair of men mocked her from a car in Toa Baja, Puerto Rico. Voices in the car can be heard threatening to shoot her, followed by what appears to be the sound of gunfire.
Before her death, accusations had spread on social media that Alexa had been peeping at another customer in a women's bathroom at a McDonald's a day earlier. CBS News' David Begnaud reports police found no proof of wrongdoing and the customer did not file charges after learning that Alexa was homeless..
'Alexa' was a transgender woman killed in Puerto Rico after social media posts accused her of peeping on people in a public bathroom. Police found no proof. The complainant didn't file charges after finding out Alexa was homeless. Despite that a narrative spread on social media. pic.twitter.com/xknfGH7HRD
— David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) February 25, 2020
Begnaud reports that officials have not held a press conference regarding the ongoing investigation since her killing on Monday.
Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vasquez expressed sadness over Alexa's death and said it should be treated as a hate crime.
"These people need to be taken taken to justice as soon as possible," she said.
Watch Bad Bunny's "Tonight Show" appearance below: