French President Emmanuel Macron has signed a decree awarding the Order of Merit to 72-year-old Ali Akbar, the last newspaper delivery boy in France, and perhaps in all of Europe. Macron used to buy newspapers from him when he was the student.
“When I started in 1973, there were 35-40 of us in Paris. Now it’s just me. No motivation. Everyone has gone online. People are constantly checking their phones,” Akbar was quoted as saying by the BBC.
Before the advent of the Internet, he sold 80 newspapers in the first hour alone – people were rushing to find out the latest news. Now he sells only 30. Half of the money is his. He has to chase after almost every client. “But this job gives me freedom. I am completely independent,” the delivery boy adds.
The Pakistani native moved to Europe in the late 1960s and first ended up in Amsterdam, but in 1972, he moved to Paris, starting to work as a newspaper delivery boy on the Left Bank. Back then, it was full of bohemians: writers, actors, musicians. Now tourists have replaced them.
