Shop owner bans 'black teens, dogs'

An Australian shop owner has sparked outrage after he put up a sign banning “black teenagers and dogs”. The sign in the window of a Melbourne store read: “Statement. Because the 14-18 year old black always steal. Prohibit 14-18 year-old blacks and dogs into the shop”.

Outraged social media users called the sign “disgusting”, “racist” and “vile”. Some labelled it a hate crime. Even the police condemned the sign with a spokesman telling news.com.au, “Victoria Police does not support the language of the poster and deems the message as inappropriate.”

The shop owner, who has taken down the sign after the backlash, told The Herald Sun that he put up the sign after a shoplifting incident involving a group of Sudanese children. “I was so angry so I went and made that sign and hung it up, a few hours later I thought about it and took it down,” the unnamed shop owner told the newspaper.