Teen bans
Should retailers fight back vs. unruly kids?
Originally published in the Moultrie News.
Many businesses in my town ban teenagers from entering without an adult. When I was young, we went everywhere without parents. How will kids learn to get along without their parents if they can’t go places without them?
It’s not just your town — it’s all across America. The International Council of Shopping Centers reports that more than 100 of the 1,222 U.S. malls restrict or ban teens during certain hours.
It’s also true of other common hangouts, like theaters and fast-food restaurants. Two highly trafficked areas near my middle school — a coffee shop and old-fashioned drugstore — have repeatedly restricted our students over the last five years.
Consider the issue from the businesses’ perspective. They cite several reasons for banning adolescents, including mistreatment of staff, fighting, theft, disruptive behavior, and excessive noise. The problems are not class-related: rich and poor alike shoplift and misbehave.
Couldn’t businesses just kick out the troublemakers? Sure, but when you’re doing that every day, a blanket ban doesn’t look unreasonable. It certainly makes sense to me, but I spend my days around hundreds of teens, so I know that unsupervised peer groups can become dangerously chaotic. Yet some parents and psychologists — who interact with far fewer kids — claim businesses are unfairly stifling kids' growth and freedom.
For example, Boston College psychology professor Peter Gray told FastCompany.com: “If we want kids to grow up with a sense of agency … we must grant them, as they grow, ever-increasing freedom to explore public spaces independently of adult control.” Jessi Gold of the University of Tennessee System’s Psychiatry Department added: “We know loneliness contributes significantly to the mental health crisis ... we need to be encouraging spaces where teens can safely have fun with friends, not prohibiting them.”
Fair enough, but who exactly is the “we” these psychologists speak of? They seem to think it’s Starbucks’ or AMC’s responsibility to foster teen independence. Not so. Businesses are obliged to serve their customers and protect their employees, not act as mental health nannies for Gen Z.
Parents’ ire is likewise misdirected. One mother, still upset that her child was banned from a grocery store, told FastCompany: “It’s been two years and I’m still mad about it.” To clarify, she’s mad at the store. Not the child.
Parents: Stop condemning others for problems you create. The primary responsibility for kids behaving themselves anywhere falls on you.
Some argue that businesses are losing out by turning away teens. Jennifer Seitz, a financial education instructor, said: “Teens have significant spending power, so businesses that exclude or ban them may be leaving money on the table.”
Well, yeah. And doesn’t that show how serious the problem has become? Foregoing easy money only makes sense if grabbing it hurts the bottom line in more serious ways — like when a few teens’ obnoxious behavior drives off hundreds of other customers.
Take the case of a New York McDonald’s, which in February began forbidding entry to anyone under 20. Store manager Amber Bussain recalls that before the ban, around 15 teens would “trash the store” every day. They threw ice at customers, stole food from delivery drivers, and smoked marijuana. In 2024 alone, the store made 111 calls to 911. The straw that broke the camel’s back occurred when kids in ski masks broke the glass door and attacked a security guard.
Do these kids really need trips to McDonald’s for the sake of their mental health and sense of agency? Or would trips to the woodshed be more productive?
By the way, don’t think this is a problem where the older generation just doesn’t get today’s youth. The manager of that McDonald's is 19 years old.
Rampant disrespect has consequences for us all. It’s sad that the majority of courteous children are punished for the entitled actions of a few. But we shouldn’t blame businesses. The guilty parties are the parents and schools who have failed to teach kids respect.
Jody Stallings has been an award-winning teacher in Charleston since 1992 and is director of the Charleston Teacher Alliance. To submit a question, order his books, or follow him on social media, please visit JodyStallings.com.