Gov. Kathy Hochul has told legislative leaders she wants New York to adopt some kind of statewide ban on wearing masks in public, involving herself in a hot-button issue that pits civil-rights and health concerns against unease over anti-Israel protests and crime.
Banning masks has been a recent source of acrimonious debate amid heated protests on college campuses. Those angered by protesters note how often they wear masks, which became commonplace during the coronavirus pandemic, to shield their identity from law enforcement. Protesters say they mask to avoid being doxxed.
The idea is particularly resonant in the aftermath of Mahmoud Khalil’s detainment by federal agents and potential deportation. He was a leader of protests at Columbia University and stood out because he chose not to wear a mask.
Ms. Hochul said on Wednesday that any restrictions on mask use should include exemptions for medical and religious purposes. But people who wear masks as they commit “a crime are deeply troubling to me,” she said.
“Think about a bank robber, walks in, their face is covered,” she added. “Someone assaults someone on the subway, they can get away with it despite the fact that we have cameras because they are masked. And so this is something that, as I’m protecting public safety, is very much top of mind.”
The potential mask ban was relayed to legislators this week, according to two people familiar with the matter. Both people, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, stressed that the negotiations are in the early stages, but it was clear that the governor wanted to include the measure in the state budget.
Spokesmen for both the Assembly speaker, Carl Heastie, and Andrea Stewart Cousins, the Senate majority leader, declined to comment on the discussions, which were first reported by Gothamist.
Ms. Hochul first expressed interest in a partial mask ban in June 2024, not long before a Republican-led legislature in Nassau County, just east of New York City, passed a local mask ban. It included medical and religious exemptions and withstood a challenge in court from disability rights advocates. The first person arrested under the law was a Latino teenager who was charged with possessing a knife and wearing a face mask in public.
Ms. Hochul said then that she broadly agreed with the idea as a way to stymie hate crime, aligning her with Republican leaders who voiced frustration over pandemic-era restrictions. That alignment could be helpful to the governor as she faces a contested re-election battle next year.
The Nassau County executive, Bruce Blakeman, a potential Republican challenger, said in a statement “that absent a health condition or religious imperative, there is no good reason why someone should be wearing a mask in public.”
“Historically, masks have been worn by racists, and recently masks are being worn by antisemites and criminals,” he said.
Another potential challenger to Ms. Hochul, Representative Ritchie Torres, a Democrat, criticized her last month for not putting a ban in place faster. His comments came as protests about the war in Gaza reignited last month at Barnard College.
Across the street, Columbia University has been swept up in a debate about the use of masks on campuses since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel and the country’s invasion of Gaza. Protests about the war there were organized partially by Mr. Khalil, a graduate student who, earlier this month, was arrested and whisked off to a detention center in Louisiana. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said his presence in the country threatens U.S. policy goals.
State Senator Julia Salazar, a Democrat representing Brooklyn, said she opposes any kind of mask ban partially because there is a “serious risk of discouraging people from masking for the purpose of public health or their personal health, regardless of the intent of such a ban.”
“I think many people are also justified in using face coverings to protect themselves amid the federal government’s ever-expanding surveillance, the criminalization of free speech and threats from the far right,” she added.
Even before Mr. Khalil’s detention, free speech groups were warning Ms. Hochul and others that this type of ban, even with exemptions, was a bad idea. It would be selectively enforced, they said, and could create a new pretext for law enforcement to arrest people protesting peacefully and infringe on their First Amendment rights.
A related measure was introduced in January by State Senator James Skoufis and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, both Democrats, and is backed by the Anti-Defamation League and the N.A.A.C.P. New York State Conference. It would amend existing law to create a new offense called “masked harassment.” They hoped this change would balance public safety with protecting health and giving people the ability to peacefully protest.
Mr. Skoufis said that if a partial mask ban was included in the budget, he hoped that goal could still be achieved.
“The issue is complex and nuanced, despite what knee-jerk opponents are alleging,” he said. “But one we ought to move forward with to best protect our state’s residents.”
The post N.Y. Leaders Considering Ban on Wearing Face Masks in Public appeared first on New York Times.
