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U.K. Riots: Website Raises £25k to Help 89-Year-Old Barber

58 points by pbahra 15y ago

bhickey 15y ago
I can't seem to find the address of his shop. Is he on Tottenham High Street? I'm past due for a haircut.
- tomjen3 15y ago
  I think you will have to wait. It will take some time to get the store back running again, even with the money.
  - kingofspain 15y ago
    According to the linked Haaretz post: Biber, 89, discovered on Sunday that in the first wave of violence this week in England, his barbershop just off the high street in Tottenham, north London, was also broken into and looted. But it didn't change a thing: On Monday morning, as has been the case every Monday for the last 41 years, he was back in the tiny shop, giving haircuts and shaving his regular clients, despite the rioters having stolen chairs and a valuable hairdryer.
- raffij 15y ago
  Found in the Reddit post. Gentlemens Hairdressing, 22 Scotland Green, Tottenham, Great London N17 9, UK http://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/jcx89/aaron_biber_89_stands_outside_his_shop_it_was/c2b59e5 http://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/jcx89/aaron_bibe...
  - bhickey 15y ago
    Thanks. I'll head over Monday morning.
pointyhat 15y ago
I think that article invoked Godwin's law.
talkingquickly 15y ago
There's quite a lot of impressively quick efforts to raise funds for people who are affected (I noticed http://cravify.com http://cravify.com who were in the TC article about mapping riot locations have updated their map to allow donations by location), the difficult bit seems to be working out where to send the money, there aren't many charities which formally deal with helping local areas recover from something like this.
- david_a_r_kemp 15y ago
  Yeah - lots of sites off of http://delootlondon.co.uk/ http://delootlondon.co.uk/ have independent donations, but they don't provide ongoing support for the communities who were hurt by this, or the individuals who had their houses and belongings destroyed.
buro9 15y ago
Last night about 40 of us (cyclists) went to a pizza parlour in Ealing that had been smashed and looted. The hooligans smashed windows, stole an empty cash register, stole alcohol and the pizza toppings (!?). We couldn't think of a better way to help out than to give them enough trade to fill their coffers to the point that they could fix the broken windows, replace things, and far more importantly feel the goodwill of the community. The level of help being given is wonderful, and it's really small and personal stuff. That barber is an extreme example, but there is a real sense of people rallying around to protect their local small businesses and the people who run them. The pizza place (if you're curious): http://www.santamariapizzeria.com/ http://www.santamariapizzeria.com/ The footage from their CCTV (if you're extremely curious): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwLMAmlomQU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwLMAmlomQU
jamesbkel 15y ago
I'm in the US, but find myself in the UK for some time every few months. While I'm not opposed to donations, I'd also love to see a tourist/business traveler guide covering establishments that were affected and would benefit from additional traffic.
- hasslblad 15y ago
  You could always check this incident map of the areas and visit the high street shops - http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/interactive/2011/aug/09/uk-riots-incident-map http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/interactive/2011/aug...

58 points by pbahra 15y ago

bhickey 15y ago

I can't seem to find the address of his shop. Is he on Tottenham High Street? I'm past due for a haircut.

tomjen3 15y ago
I think you will have to wait. It will take some time to get the store back running again, even with the money.
- kingofspain 15y ago
  According to the linked Haaretz post: Biber, 89, discovered on Sunday that in the first wave of violence this week in England, his barbershop just off the high street in Tottenham, north London, was also broken into and looted. But it didn't change a thing: On Monday morning, as has been the case every Monday for the last 41 years, he was back in the tiny shop, giving haircuts and shaving his regular clients, despite the rioters having stolen chairs and a valuable hairdryer.
raffij 15y ago
Found in the Reddit post. Gentlemens Hairdressing, 22 Scotland Green, Tottenham, Great London N17 9, UK http://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/jcx89/aaron_biber_89_stands_outside_his_shop_it_was/c2b59e5 http://www.reddit.com/r/reddit.com/comments/jcx89/aaron_bibe...
- bhickey 15y ago
  Thanks. I'll head over Monday morning.

pointyhat 15y ago

I think that article invoked Godwin's law.

talkingquickly 15y ago

There's quite a lot of impressively quick efforts to raise funds for people who are affected (I noticed http://cravify.com http://cravify.com who were in the TC article about mapping riot locations have updated their map to allow donations by location), the difficult bit seems to be working out where to send the money, there aren't many charities which formally deal with helping local areas recover from something like this.

david_a_r_kemp 15y ago
Yeah - lots of sites off of http://delootlondon.co.uk/ http://delootlondon.co.uk/ have independent donations, but they don't provide ongoing support for the communities who were hurt by this, or the individuals who had their houses and belongings destroyed.

buro9 15y ago

Last night about 40 of us (cyclists) went to a pizza parlour in Ealing that had been smashed and looted. The hooligans smashed windows, stole an empty cash register, stole alcohol and the pizza toppings (!?). We couldn't think of a better way to help out than to give them enough trade to fill their coffers to the point that they could fix the broken windows, replace things, and far more importantly feel the goodwill of the community. The level of help being given is wonderful, and it's really small and personal stuff. That barber is an extreme example, but there is a real sense of people rallying around to protect their local small businesses and the people who run them. The pizza place (if you're curious): http://www.santamariapizzeria.com/ http://www.santamariapizzeria.com/ The footage from their CCTV (if you're extremely curious): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwLMAmlomQU http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwLMAmlomQU

jamesbkel 15y ago

I'm in the US, but find myself in the UK for some time every few months. While I'm not opposed to donations, I'd also love to see a tourist/business traveler guide covering establishments that were affected and would benefit from additional traffic.

hasslblad 15y ago
You could always check this incident map of the areas and visit the high street shops - http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/interactive/2011/aug/09/uk-riots-incident-map http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/interactive/2011/aug...