Dutch student raises thousands for London riot victim

RNW, 16 August 2011

An Internet appeal started by Björn Conradi, a student from Den Bosch, has raised over 35,000 pounds (about 40,000 euros) for an elderly London barber whose shop was destroyed in last week’s riots.

“The door was smashed in and they even nicked my chairs,” said Aaron Biber, who had been working at his Tottenham salon for over 40 years before he found it ransacked and destroyed on 10 August. “I will probably have to close because I haven’t got insurance and I can’t afford the repairs.”

Conradi was touched by Biber’s story and launched the charity website, Keep Aaron Cutting. The total funds were raised from donors all over the world in the span of just three days.

The result is much more than Biber needs to restore his salon. Speaking to Dutch newspaper Brabants Dagblad, Conradi said he hopes to see the extra money shared with other businesses in the area affected by the violence.