A Cuban residing abroad published a video on TikTok yesterday, recorded after leaving work at 5:45 PM, in which she highlights the exhaustion of emigrants towards people in Cuba who ask them for money for non-essential expenses, like buying beer, while they can be seen enjoying themselves at the beach.
"These people in Cuba who ask you for money... just to buy beer, and you see them on the beach enjoying life," says @bombonleal07 candidly and with visible exhaustion after their workday.
The emigrant clarifies that she is not complaining about her situation; rather, she points out the lack of recognition for the efforts of those who work outside of Cuba.
"There comes a moment when one gets tired, I swear, there comes a moment when one gets tired, of seeing people who don’t know, who don’t make an effort, just waiting to see what one can send from here," he states in the video.
One of the arguments that bothers him the most is the minimization of the amounts sent: "They tell me: Come on, my son, twenty pesos are nothing, man, but twenty pesos is still twenty pesos for gasoline, and right now gasoline is really expensive."
The author acknowledges that there is a real need in Cuba, but draws a direct comparison to her own reality abroad: "I understand that there is need in Cuba, but here if there is no rice, you still have to eat bread with sugar; here you can’t just go to your neighbor and ask, 'Can you give me a little bit of rice?'"
That accumulated pressure led her to change her attitude over time: "People become brazen, people become very manipulative, and that bothers me."
His decision is now clear: "My money for me, my son for my family now, and a few friendships, and nothing more."
The testimony of @bombonleal07 is not an isolated case. In April 2025, another Cuban resident in Spain known as Chanel (@chanel.165) starred in a similar viral video, asking: “Do people, when they ask you for 100€, 150€ or 50€, think that money falls from the sky? I believe they do.” Chanel added: “They tell you: you can send me 100€, recharge my phone, you can, you can... without knowing the sacrifice one has to make here, not to earn 50€, but to earn 5€!”
This debate takes place against the backdrop of one of the worst economic crises in Cuba in decades. According to the Food Monitor Program, 33.9% of Cuban households experienced hunger in 2025, 25% went to bed without dinner, and 79.4% spent more than 80% of their income on food.
The average state salary in Cuba is equivalent to just between 15 and 20 dollars per month, making remittances a vital support for millions of families, while over 1.4 million Cubans have emigrated since 2021, leaving elderly individuals and vulnerable relatives directly dependent on those who left.
The paradox highlighted by @bombonleal07 —asking for money for beer while posting on social media from the beach— divides the Cuban community between those who advocate for unconditional family solidarity and those who assert the right to set limits after years of sacrifice.
"Here one also goes according to their taste, but one has to work to fight for their dreams. The difference back in Cuba is that monotony is lived all the time," concludes the emigrant.
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