The Moston chef was devastated to find his livelihood burned to the ground.
A local chef named David OlaLekan Kamson has successfully raised over £77,000, after hearing his beloved food truck was burned to the ground just two days ago – only days after being the subject of racial abuse from another local man.
The chef, whose business is known as Moston Suya, was running errands at the local Post Office when he was told of the news that his van – which he’d saved £3000 to purchase – had been destroyed, including the expensive contents inside of it.
Posting about the horrific crime on his Instagram page, @mostonsuya, David said: “I worked hard 3 years 9 months.. I saved money… no social – bought a catering Trailer for £3000 pounds. Spent £438 pounds to bring down from Canterbury Kent to Manchester. So I can serve food in a decent environment for my community.”
The chef then went on to describe the racial abuse he’d received from a local man just two days ago, saying that the man had said “black immigrants come in Moston to do business like they own it” and that he had “eyes” on his trailer.
David revealed that when he went to check on the van after being told of its destruction in the Post Office two days later, he’d found that it had been completely turned to ash, including the £2200 worth of equipment that was inside of it.
“This Act of Hate should not be allowed in Moston.” David added. “This is hateful and sad … All the kids that get chicken from me, all the street homeless and beggars I give food to Most are not black, I have no colour black or white… I am a community man and should be treated as one, I kept trying to feed myself and shelter my soul..”
In a turn of wholesome events, however, after setting up a GoFundMe just yesterday to help him rebuild his business, the community has pulled together to raise a whopping £77,000 – over £71,000 more than David initially needed to get back on his feet again. His posts have attracted the attention of social media users from all over the country, with over 2,000 people having now commented on his original post – and over 7,400 donaters.
David’s food truck is known for providing the community with tasty Suya, a West African cuisine, and he often helps those in the community in need of food.