Here’s why this McDonald’s decided to ban teenagers
What do an R-rated movie and McDonald’s have in common? Young teens are not permitted inside unless accompanied by an adult.
This is no joke: a McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania recently placed an age restriction on who can enter the restaurant. Teens regularly hang out at the fast food chain, and sometimes up to 50 minors can be found socializing after school. We can’t say the teens’ decision doesn’t make sense; usually, McDonalds are equipped with plenty of seating and the food is inexpensive (and, ok, dangerously tasty).
Though nothing brings people together quite like French fries, this particular McDonald’s location experienced a disturbance last week. Four male teens were charged with, “defiant trespassing, simple assault, harassment, and stalking,” which caused a commotion within the large crowd of students in the restaurant. The owners seem to blame the disruption on the number of teens hanging out and have posted a sign on the restaurant’s door stating that anyone under 18 is not allowed in the establishment without an adult.
We Are Central PA reported that the business shared a statement that said, “Our top priority is the safety of our customers and crew. For this reason we have put a temporary policy in place, limiting lobby to only accompanied minors.”
Last September, a similar situation happened in Antioch, California where masses of teens were reportedly brawling the parking lots of a local Taco Bell and McDonald’s. Instead of placing a ban on minors, that McDonald’s location closed between 3:00 and 4:30 p.m., around when the neighborhood high school let out for the day.
While, of course, getting an afternoon McFlurry fix is very important to us, when it comes to safety, we’re lovin’ it. For more information on the situation in Altoona, check out this news segment.
