BREAKING NEWS – Modesto, California – A California 7-Eleven said it found a way to keep panhandlers and loiterers from hanging out inside the store: blast classical music. Sukhi Sandhu, who owns the franchise in Modesto, told The Modesto Bee his customers tell him they feel safer since he started blasting symphonies and occasional operas over outdoor speakers. “Once the music started, the riffraff left,” Manuel Souza, who’s homeless and jokingly referred to himself as part of the riffraff, said. The loud music makes it hard “to hang out and gossip and joke around” near the store, Souza told the paper last week from under a tree down the block. The ACLU is currently seeking an injunction to stop the 7-11 from playing classical musical, after the civil rights organization said they received several complaints from bums and shoplifters.
