(Some) McDonalds ban under-18s

[LurkingHusband]

www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/35699369/some-mcdonalds-and-kfc-branches-are-banning-under-18s

Fair enough.

I've lived in London for over 20 years, and large groups of black kids would hang around in these fast food chains in my area, stabbings were commonplace
One innocent bypasser was stabbed in the head and killed by a youth I recognised in the papers, because he had shouted abuse at me, and called me "Miss Brownylocks" after I asked him to "excuse me" as his bike was in the way.

It's not surprising big chains want to disassociate themselves from antisocial behaviour.
These kids need to get a proper hobby or something.

This is near me, there has been some trouble going on recently with groups of teenagers with knives and guns.
There's always been trouble there, about 10/12 years ago there was a curfew in that area for under 18s.
I'm glad they are cracking down on this behaviour, I worry about bringing my children up here.

Isn't that a bit - don't know ophelia

It's a bit shit?

I just wondered why you specified black I guess?

Because they were?

Well yes. But McDonald's haven't banned black youngsters have they?

I don't blame McDonald's etc for doing it - but it is not going to solve the problem, just move it somewhere else.

Large groups of black kids?
Well fuck me, ban them all. White kids never do things like that.

My DS and some of his friends are mixed race- what do we do with them? Is he only allowed in if he is with white friends

What a fucking joke

A group of black kids were throwing coins at me, 1p and 2p etc, shouting "pick up the money bitch, pick up the money browneylocks" after I left the fast food restaurant.
I recognised one of them in the papers after he stabbed someone on the street.

I have to live in this area with my child. I can't ignore identifying information as to who is abusing me can I.

A group of kids would have done I think.

It's a shame for the kids that so many of the youth clubs, adventure playgrounds, libraries, even some recreation grounds have been shut due to austerity cuts. I think the ethnic stereotyping was quite uncalled for.

Feral kids will still be s problem. Their feckless parents aren't going to suddenly behave properly and discipline them, just because McDonald's have banned them.

It seems like a shame to have young people demonized. On the other hand, I wonder what situations led up to this decision :(

0phelia Your reference to race was unnecessary. For context, the reverse of 'a large group of white kids' wouldn't be used.

Babymamamama the amount of youth clubs, portable youth club, courses, recreation grounds and interventions to help these children in this area are unbelievable. There is so much they could go and do rather than shoot each other. The problem is they don't want to engage with it.

For clarity, the groups which prompted the bans by the outlets mentioned in the article are predominantly white. There have been an awful lot of incidents in the last few weeks, including two which required the Armed Response team, involving knives and replica firearms.

There used to be a youth centre in the area, however it was closed after repeated vandalism and arson attacks.

Yes, Sproglets, there are - the area in question is close to the Stoke City ground, and they have a lot of youth programmes. There's also an activity programme run by the police in the summer holidays, and several well run outreach interventions which concentrate on that end of the city.

Stoke is a city with a lot of problems, and some of the worst performing schools in the country, and it has been affected by austerity cuts, although to some extent that is the fault of the previous council, who preferred to spend ridiculous amounts of money on pointless things which were of no benefit to anyone outside of the council leadership.

Ophelia, that sounds racist to me.

It's an Internet forum, not a witness statement. Why not tell us what height the bad 'uns tend to be if we need this "identifying information"? Just as relevant to this story.

Yes, I get it. A woman being called "bitch" and having money thrown at her is fine, and how dare she try to describe who it was.
This is the precise misogynist PC correctness problem our society is facing.

If it were a group of women, I would have said "a group or women" if it were a group of footballers I would have said "group of footballers assaulted me" if it were a group of city bankers I would have said "A group if city bankers assaulted me" but god forbid you say a group of kids were black if you happen to assaulted by them for being a woman.

Thanks for the support.

Haha, what BS! So if it was a group of white kids, you would have said "a group of white teenagers"? Is that what you would have said? Obviously not, or you would have used that as your example above, not trying to blur the lines by talking about other things.

You are a brilliant example of "exclusive white feminism". As a woman, AND an ethnic minority, the type of language you employ directly feeds into the oppression I experience for being both a woman AND an ethnic minority. Feminism that is not intersectional is no real feminism at all. And nobody said the way you were treated was acceptable, it obviously was not, it was disgusting and needs stamping out - so does racism.

I'm not the one abusing people on the street, or on the internet.

I live on the outskirts of SE London. My local McDonald's has a bouncer. A bloody bouncer to keep the massive groups of teenagers in check.

Ophelia, I have lived in London all my life. I have been sexually assaulted, mugged and repeatedly threatened. It has never once struck me to mention that all these guys were white when I've been relating these tales.

It wasn't OK what happened to you. It wasn't OK what happened to me. But bringing race into it sounds racist, unless you think it's a race crime, and then it is relevant.