A Republican-controlled legislature in a New York suburban county approved a bill this week to ban protesters from wearing masks in public places, though exceptions are made for people who cover their faces for health or religious reasons.
Nassau County lawmakers introduced the Mask Transparency Act to target “antisemitic incidents, often perpetrated by those in masks” in the wake of Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel. The county is located on Long Island.
The bill’s Republican backers argue masked protesters should be punished for engaging in criminal behavior and violence, while Democratic detractors contend the measure will infringe on the health-privacy rights of those with disabilities and not be fairly applied to different communities. The legislature’s twelve Republicans unanimously voted in favor of the bill on Monday, and the chamber’s seven Democrats abstained.
Nassau County executive Bruce Blakeman is expected to sign the bill into law, as he has already expressed support for it.
“Unless someone has a medical condition or a religious imperative, people should not be allowed to cover their face in a manner that hides their identity when in public,” the local Republican said after the legislature’s vote.
Once it takes effect, the bill will classify mask wearing in the context of a public protest as a misdemeanor. Those who violate the new law can serve up to one year in jail, receive a $1,000 fine, or face both punishments.
People who wear masks for health, safety, “religious or cultural purposes, or for the peaceful celebration of a holiday or similar religious or cultural event for which masks or facial coverings are customarily worn” are exempted from the bill’s provisions.
The New York Civil Liberties Union condemned the mask ban, claiming it infringes on citizens’ free-speech rights.
“Masks protect people who express political opinions that are unpopular,” NYCLU’s Nassau County regional director Susan Gottehrer said in a statement. “Making anonymous protest illegal chills political action and is ripe for selective enforcement, leading to doxxing, surveillance, and retaliation against protesters.”
On the other hand, Nassau County police commissioner Patrick Ryder assured lawmakers that officers will only arrest someone who wears a mask for criminal reasons and not for medical or religious reasons. If officers are unsure of the situation, they are allowed to approach the suspect.
“We are not going to just arrest someone for wearing a mask. We are going to go up to the person and talk to them and find out,” Ryder said during Monday’s testimony to the legislature.
In June, New York governor Kathy Hochul announced she was considering a potential ban on mask-wearing in the New York City subway system due to rampant antisemitic acts in recent months. New York alone is responsible for nearly 14 percent of all reported antisemitic incidents across the U.S. in 2023, a statistic clearly exacerbated by October 7.
It remains to be seen whether the Democratic governor will move forward with the measure, as she has received backlash from civil-liberties groups and disability advocates. No official plan to enact such a ban has been announced.
“We will not tolerate individuals using masks to evade responsibility for criminal or threatening behavior. My team is working on a solution, but on a subway, people should not be able to hide behind a mask to commit crimes,” Hochul said, noting she has support from Mayor Eric Adams on the issue.