By Isabel Rodríguez Ramiro
Paris, Aug 20 (EFE).- Paris’ last street newspaper vendor, Ali Akbar, has been selling papers in the Latin Quarter for more than half a century. Now, at 73, the Pakistani immigrant will be decorated in September by French President Emmanuel Macron with the National Order of Merit, recognizing his dedication to a disappearing trade.
Ali Akbar arrived in Paris in the early 1970s, first working in restaurants and even sleeping on the streets before finding his calling selling newspapers in Saint-Germain-des-Prés. “I like being here, with the people,” he told EFE.
Over time, he became a fixture of the neighborhood, where shopkeepers, waiters, and residents consider him part of the urban landscape.
On Wednesday morning, his first customer was former French Prime Minister Michel Barnier.
Years earlier, when Macron was still a student at SciencesPo, he too bought newspapers from Ali.
“It’s a great memory and an important moment. I will be invited to the Élysée to receive a medal from someone who once bought papers from me as a student,” Ali said.
A dying profession
Ali is one of the last surviving voices of a profession nearly erased by digital news.
After 53 years of selling papers, he sees the award not only as personal recognition but also as a tribute to others who shared the same trade. “It’s like a homage to all of us who were part of this story,” he said.
Despite technological change, he still delivers between 50 and 60 copies a day, mostly of Le Monde, the paper most in demand among the area’s intellectuals and bohemian bourgeois.
But many customers buy more for affection than information. “Many people don’t buy for the news but as a favor, out of kindness,” he admitted.
His work brings in around 50 euros a day, barely enough to live in Paris.
Still, Ali refuses to retire. “I won’t stop. I’ll continue as long as I have strength,” he insisted.
More than a job
Seven days a week, Ali walks the streets with bundles of newspapers under his arm, stopping at cafés, bookshops, and terraces where regulars greet him by name.
For him, work is not only a livelihood but also an identity. “I am free. I don’t depend on anyone. I have fun with this job,” he said with a smile.
From helping his family back in Pakistan with his early wages to becoming a symbol of the Latin Quarter, Ali has built a life around a vanishing craft.
Surrounded by steaming cups of coffee and loyal customers, he continues to shout the morning headlines, the last voice of a once-vibrant Parisian tradition. EFE
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