By India McCarty
A troubling rise in incidents involving unruly groups of teens in public spaces has experts warning parents to speak to their kids about how to behave in public spaces.
“What’s happening with large groups of teens overrunning malls and public spaces isn’t just ‘kids being kids,’” Jonathan Alpert, a New York City-based psychotherapist, told Fox News Digital. “It’s a symptom of a deeper cultural breakdown, and unless we’re willing to address it, these flash mobs will only get worse.”
For example, a recent incident at an Illinois public pool ended with the police showing up and ordering “200 to 300” young people to disperse after they had disturbed others at the pool.
“Some of the attendees were observed entering without paying, smoking cannabis, consuming alcoholic beverages in violation of the park district’s ordinances, and igniting illegal fireworks,” a press release from the Glen Ellyn, Illinois, police department stated. “Due to the unruly and illegal behavior of several attendees, the park district chose to close the pool early. Officers from several neighboring jurisdictions assisted with the evacuation of the park.”
A similar event took place in a Brentwood, California mall, with over 300 juveniles coming to the shopping center and becoming “unruly,” fighting and knocking items off shelves.
“It was the cops chasing the kids around, the kids fighting, and then it just got rowdier and rowdier,” an unnamed witness told Fox KTVU. “I don’t know if the cops thought it was going to be as crazy as it was.”
Alpert chalked it up to being “raised without enough structure,” explaining that parents are afraid to tell their children “no,” while schools and society “tiptoe around holding young people accountable.”
Related: How Social Media Increases Violence, Homicide Among Teens
“The result is exactly what we’re seeing play out across our country: Teens testing limits because they haven’t learned where those limits are,” he continued.
Alpert pointed to social media as a cause, as many teens take part in these kinds of activities “for likes, shares and clout.”
“Businesses and communities must crack down with clear, consistent enforcement,” he concluded. “But let’s not pretend this is just a policing issue. It’s a parenting issue. It’s a cultural issue. And unless adults step up and model respect for rules and shared spaces, we’ll keep seeing teens treating public areas like their personal playgrounds.”
While these recent incidents are on the extreme end of the spectrum, it’s important for parents to talk to their teens about what they see on social media and the proper way to conduct themselves in public, shared spaces — and discipline them when they break those rules.
Read Next: Does Your Teen Display Aggressive Behavior? This Might Be Why…
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