Stay away, Travis
Police union is furious that rapper Scott plans Houston concert on the heels of 2021 tragedy
Travis Scott is planning his first concert in Houston since the 2021 Astroworld tragedy, and law enforcement have taken a public stance against the event.
Following Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner confirming Tuesday that the rapper’s Utopia Presents Circus Maximus tour will make a stop at Houston’s Toyota Center on Oct. 19, the city’s police union issued a statement condemning the concert.
“Like most, we were in complete disbelief that anyone would approve of Travis Scott or the production company having another concert,” began the statement Houston Police Officers’ Union President Douglas Griffith sent to KPRC. “Only days after the release of a 1,200-page report describing the tragic events that took place during this Astroworld concert, we are advised that there will be another performance.”
“Just two weeks ago we were asking for prayers and healing for the families of the Astroworld tragedy and then we are once again opening those wounds with announcing another concert,” the organization continued. “We believe that it is unreasonable to allow this concert to go forward and call upon elected officials to stand up and say, not in our city, not again!”
Scott organized and headlined the Astroworld Festival on Nov. 5, 2021, which ended its first night in what authorities called a “mass casualty incident” with deaths and injuries from compression asphyxia at Houston’s NRG Park.
On June 29, a Texas grand jury elected not to indict the “Sicko Mode” rapper on criminal charges for the tragedy that left 10 dead and thousands injured.
Scott, whose given name is Jacques Bermon Webster II, and several other event organizers were reportedly included in the criminal probe. Multiple civil cases were filed, with one privately settled by the rapper last year.
Mayor Turner released a statement to the Daily News on Wednesday afternoon about the upcoming Utopia Presents Circus Maximus tour stop, emphasizing that it will be held at a different venue — which will hopefully lead to a different outcome.
“Unlike the Astroworld Festival at NRG in 2021, the concert will be held in a different type of venue. The Toyota Center has been a good partner with the city of Houston, and we expect this to continue for this and every other concert,” Turner’s statement said.
“Before today’s announcement, Toyota Center representatives convened meetings with public safety officials and the city’s special events office. They will continue working together to ensure this concert’s safety, not unlike the many other concerts and events held at Toyota Center each year.”
The venue, which opened in 2003, has a concert seating capacity of 19,000.
An American nurse and her young daughter who had been kidnapped in Haiti were freed Wednesday, two weeks after the ordeal began.
Alix Dorsainvil, 31, and her daughter were snatched July 27 while working for an aid organization, El Roi Haiti, founded by Dorsainvil’s husband.
“It is with a heart of gratitude and immense joy that we at El Roi Haiti confirm the safe release of our staff member and friend, Alix Dorsainvil and her child who were held hostage in
Port au Prince,” El Roi Haiti said Wednesday in a statement.
The organization did not share any details surrounding Dorsainvil’s release, instead asking “that no attempts be made to contact Alix or her family at this time.”
Dorsainvil (photo) is a New Hampshire native who has been working at El Roi Haiti for years alongside her husband, Sandro.
People in Port-au-Prince respected the group, to the point that 200 residents marched through the streets in protest after Dorsainvil and her daughter were kidnapped, according to CBS News.
Port-au-Prince remains one of the most dangerous cities in the world. In July alone, 83 people were kidnapped, according to human rights observers.
The U.S. State Department has issued a “Do Not Travel” notice for Haiti, and nonessential personnel have been evacuated from the U.S. Embassy in Port-au-Prince. Gunfire outside the embassy shuttered operations on Tuesday, and restrictions remained in place Wednesday.
Street gangs began marauding through Port-au-Prince shortly after twin disasters in the summer of 2021. In July of that year, President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated at his home in the city. Just over a month later, a massive earthquake devastated the entire nation.
“Kidnapping is widespread, and victims regularly include U.S. citizens,” the State Department warned, noting that “kidnappers may use sophisticated planning ... and even convoys have been attacked.”
In October 2021, 17 American and Canadian missionaries were grabbed off the streets. They made a daring escape to freedom two months later.
In March 2023, a Florida couple was kidnapped in Port-au-Prince. Jean-Dickens Toussaint and Abigail Michael Toussaint were held for nearly one month before their family paid thousands of dollars in ransom.