NYC Mayor Eric Adams isn't gagging speech – his mask ban protects New Yorkers

In a bold, but constitutionally sound move, New York City Mayor Eric Adams has announced a new policy banning the wearing of face masks in certain public spaces. Predictably, the usual critics have begun to hyperventilate—equating this common-sense public safety measure with an assault on civil liberties. But reports that some Jewish groups are not on board have been greatly exaggerated. Many, if not most, mainstream groups do support the bill, and in fact, the very groups named by anonymous sources have actually come out publicly in support of mask bans generally, and in one case this mask ban in particular. A sober review of the facts and the law reveals an initiative far less scandalous and far more important than the haters would have you believe: a responsible effort to protect not just Jewish citizens but all New Yorkers while staying well within the bounds of constitutional jurisprudence.

The Constitution does not guarantee a right to anonymous public demonstrations via concealed identity. As the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit explained in Church of the American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan v. Kerik, 356 F.3d 197 (2d Cir. 2004), "The Supreme Court has never held that freedom of association or the right to engage in anonymous speech entails a right to conceal one's appearance in a public demonstration. Nor has any Circuit found such a right."

That case involved the KKK—an organization notorious for exploiting anonymity to intimidate and terrorize. And yet the principle applies universally: in a civil society, especially one dealing with rising crime, antisemitic threats, and politically charged tensions spilling into our streets, the state has a compelling interest in being able to identify individuals in public spaces.

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New York, like many major cities, is facing a crisis of rising masked violence. From antisemitic mobs vandalizing Jewish businesses to coordinated flash mob robberies, bad actors are abusing face coverings—not for public health, but to evade accountability. Mayor Adams’ policy isn’t about targeting peaceful protestors. It’s about stopping those who hide behind the veil of anonymity to harm others or break the law. That’s not just smart policy — it’s basic governance. And the law is squarely on his side.

Mayor Adams is not banning speech. He is not targeting any viewpoint. He is simply saying that in a free society, public protest must be public. That’s a narrow, content-neutral regulation of conduct, not a restriction on expression—and well within the constitutional framework laid out by the Supreme Court.

It is well established that the government can impose reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions on speech and association—especially when public safety is at stake. In fact, during the COVID-19 pandemic, courts made clear that even mandatory mask laws could be constitutionally enforced. Surely the inverse—a prohibition on masks in contexts where they pose a public safety threat—is just as lawful. When demonstrators march with masks, they hinder law enforcement’s ability to maintain order and investigate crimes. And that’s not just theoretical- both NYPD and DA officials have cited multiple instances where masked agitators used anonymity to provoke violence, destroy property, or evade arrest.

Even the ACLU, when it’s being honest, will admit that the First Amendment is not a suicide pact. Rights exist in balance with responsibilities. And the right to speak does not automatically translate to a right to conceal one’s identity in a public square during a moment of high tension.

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To those worried about a possible chilling effect: there are better ways to protect speech than encouraging lawlessness. People have every right to voice dissent. They do not have a constitutional right to do so while dressed for anonymity in a way that frustrates law enforcement and endangers the public. The best remedy for offensive speech is more speech, not more masks. Civil disobedience has always required courage—and that includes the willingness to stand behind your convictions, quite literally, with your face uncovered. From Martin Luther King Jr. to Soviet refuseniks, the history of protest is a history of public witness, not masked mobs.

Mayor Adams has done what responsible leaders must: balance liberty with security, transparency with protection. He has not banned protests. He has not censored speech. He has merely said that if you want to speak in public, you must do so with your face uncovered—just like millions of brave Americans have done throughout our history, marching for justice without hiding who they are.

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The reality is this: When people feel unsafe walking the streets or riding the subway, the whole idea of an open society begins to crumble. Order is not the enemy of liberty. It is its precondition. We live in a democracy, not a masquerade.

And it’s time we start acting like it.