Democrats should support a proper buffer to protect synagogues from aggressive protests. But what may matter most under Mayor Zohran Mamdani is the willingness to enforce the law
January 23, 2026 14:47
It’s an election year, so New York’s Democratic establishment is again solicitous of voters. For the city’s Jews, that means finally addressing the aggressive protests seen outside synagogues following October 7. Democrats must decide their preferred solution, and two big questions loom: should buffer zones separating protesters from houses of worship be 25 feet (7.6 metres) or 100ft (30.5 metres), and would such a law withstand possible legal challenges?
Demonstrators targeting local Jews have persisted, but the protest outside Park East Synagogue on November 19 was a tipping point. Protesters sought to intimidate Jews attending a Nefesh B’Nefesh information session about moving to Israel. The Combat Antisemitism Movement documented 13 antisemitic phrases used by the 200 anti-Zionist protesters, including “Globalise the Intifada.” Protesters also chanted, “We need to make them scared.”
A legislative remedy arrived in December. Building on existing state law protecting abortion services and religious worship, State Assemblyman Micah Lasher – who faces a competitive Congressional primary – and State Senator Sam Sutton introduced a bill. It would “create a 25ft buffer zone around places of worship and health care facilities to protect New Yorkers from harassment and intimidation”. The pair acknowledged their buffer is “modest,” but believe “the legislation balances the critical constitutional protections of speech and religion”. New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who is being primaried, weighed in during last Tuesday’s State of the State address. Referencing a recent protest with “pro-Hamas chants outside a synagogue” in Queens, Hochul called protesters’ actions “harassment” and “targeting.” She continued, “I’m proposing a ban on protests within 25ft of the property line at houses of worship, so those who simply want to pray can do so without fear or harassment.”
Finally, New York city council Speaker Julie Menin announced her own plan last Friday. The New York Times reported Menin’s bill “has yet to be drafted,” but she told the NYT, “The Council’s bill would probably go further than the governor’s proposal by requiring a 100ft barrier.”
Twenty-five feet beats zero, but 100ft would better ensure Jews feel safe entering synagogues and simplify police efforts to manage protests. Existing reference points deserve consideration.
“New York law makes it illegal to campaign within 100ft of the entrance to any active poll site,” Assemblyman Kalman Yeger told me. “I would think the same proximity rule can and should be provided to people entering a house of worship. If the law is narrowly-tailored and neutral in its intent and application, it should pass the same constitutional muster as the election rule.”
Ilya Shapiro, director of constitutional studies at the Manhattan Institute, and Josh Blackman, centennial chair of constitutional law at South Texas College of Law Houston, told me the Supreme Court has declined to reconsider buffer zones around abortion clinics. Blackman didn’t know of a related precedent for houses of worship, but thought such a bill “could survive on an even stronger [legal] footing”.
Blackman delineated: “With the abortion clinics, pro-life demonstrators try to talk to those entering those facilities to persuade them not to enter. With houses of worship, the rowdy protesters aren’t trying to persuade Jews of anything; they are trying to intimidate and make it harder to enter synagogues. I think there is less of a speech interest, as the Hamas demonstrators aren’t trying to have one-on-one conversations. They don’t need to be quite as close.”
Shapiro added that the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act of 1994, which protects abortion services and religious freedom, already “prohibits the use of physical force, threat of physical force, or physical obstruction to injure, intimidate, or interfere with anyone accessing a place of worship”. Therefore, “no new legislation is needed to cover rowdy/violent protests. It’s a question of enforcement.” And therein lies the rub. New York City’s Corbynist mayor already revoked his predecessor’s executive order requiring protests “be prohibited or regulated within an area of at least 15ft [4.6 metres] and up to 60ft [18.2 metres] from the entrance to a house of worship”.
Yeger observed: “Even if the state legislature does pass a law protecting houses of worship, it would still require the NYPD to enforce with arrests and NYC district attorneys to prosecute, and I don’t believe that will happen.”
Democrats should support a 100ft buffer for religious institutions to make a meaningful difference. However, what may matter most under Mayor Zohran Mamdani is which laws the state and federal governments willingly enforce.
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