How Small Businesses Receive Help in the Aftermath of Looting

Last updated on September 9, 2020

Remember, let’s be polite; let’s be respectful, but most of all, let’s be outspoken.

LA CAÑADA – On May 30th, 2020, APT.4B was vandalized and damaged in the Los Angeles Fairfax District. According to the Los Angeles Times, “the store’s security chain was broken and glass at the front of the shop shattered. Most of Apt. 4B’s clothing and hip-hop memorabilia was taken.” Therefore, on May 31st, Khayat created a GoFundMe page to raise money for the affected business.

In a recent interview with the Outspoken Oppa, Arthur said, “After seeing videos all over the news about APT.4B getting looted, I wanted to help this African American owned store with the damages, so I created a GoFundMe to raise funds for this store.”

On September 4th, 2020, Arthur Khayat met with Moon Moronta, one of the store’s owners, to donate nearly four hundred dollars. Arthur described the owner as “very appreciative of the contribution to help his store out.”

After various help from the community, Moronta stated,  “It’s incredible. My friend joked that we’re insured by the culture. That’s why … when people talk about ‘streetwear this and streetwear that,’ they’re disconnected in some way because that’s not what’s happening. … This is the community getting together.”

The GoFundMe was a project conducted by his own reselling business called Astreetwear. Arthur said, “Astreetwear is my reselling business where I buy clothes/shoes and price them at a higher price than before. This is mainly where I get supreme clothes, shoes, and money from my sales.”

Arthur plans to donate his reselling business profits to a meningioma research charity. According to Arthur, “Someone in my family had meningioma, which is a benign tumor, and it left an impact on me, so I wanted to do all I could to help research towards this tumor.”

Remember, let’s be polite; let’s be respectful, but most of all, let’s be outspoken.