New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill Tuesday that makes it a crime to block someone from entering a house of worship or to act in a way that makes worshippers fear for their safety, and that expressly allows police to set up 50-foot security perimeters outside such buildings where protests are not allowed. The legislation, a Democrat-led response to months of disruptive protests outside synagogues, aims to safeguard religious practice but has drawn sharp criticism from civil liberties advocates who say it threatens free speech at a moment when dissent is particularly needed.
“Every New Yorker should be able to enter their house of worship and practice their religion without fear,” Hochul said in a statement after signing the measure.
The statute criminalizes blocking access to any house of worship and empowers local law enforcement to designate buffer zones around the entrances, where demonstrations are prohibited. The 50-foot boundary is not automatic; it must be established by police on a case-by-case basis, adding a layer of enforcement discretion. Supporters of the law, including some Jewish community leaders, argued that the protests outside synagogues had become intimidating and were interfering with congregants’ ability to attend services.
The bill passed in the final days of the legislative session after weeks of demonstrations that at times grew loud and confrontational. Protesters targeted synagogues in New York City, including some prominent congregations, over Israel’s military campaigns in Gaza. The demonstrations drew complaints from worshippers who said they felt harassed, and from elected officials who argued that houses of worship should be free from the kind of pressure tactics typically directed at government buildings.
But critics, including the New York Civil Liberties Union, say the law risks giving police broad power to quash nonviolent protests and could be applied selectively to suppress dissent.
“This law risks chilling activism at a time when the voices of New Yorkers are more needed than ever, which will be a gift to the Trump administration,” said Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union. “This effort to trade away New Yorkers’ rights was needless and reflects the worst kind of governance.”
Lieberman’s reference to the Trump administration touches on a broader anxiety among civil libertarians: that a Democratic-controlled state has given law enforcement a tool that a federal administration hostile to protest movements could try to replicate or that could become normalized. Constitutional scholars have noted that buffer zones around clinics and certain public buildings have survived court challenges, but applying the concept to houses of worship raises fresh First Amendment questions. The law is likely to face legal challenges.
The measure does not define what constitutes “acting in a way that makes worshippers fear for their safety,” leaving the determination to police officers and judges. That vagueness, opponents say, invites arbitrary enforcement and could encompass peaceful, silent demonstrations.
Proponents counter that the law is narrowly tailored to protect a fundamental right — the free exercise of religion. They point to the harassment that worshippers have reported, including being followed, shouted at, and blocked from entering their synagogues.
Hochul, who had signaled earlier this month that she would sign the bill, did not address the free-speech criticism in her signing statement. Her office referred questions to the state Division of Criminal Justice Services, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The law takes effect immediately. Legal observers expect the first test cases — whether someone is arrested for standing near a house of worship with a sign or for trying to enter during a protest — to shape how the courts interpret the buffer-zone provision.
The legislation places New York among a small but growing number of states that have sought to increase protections for worshippers, often in response to specific incidents. Minnesota, for example, passed a law earlier this year criminalizing disruptions of religious services after a church protest over immigration enforcement. The New York law is broader, covering any house of worship and giving police explicit authority to create protest-free zones rather than relying only on trespass or disorderly-conduct charges.
As the statute goes into effect, both sides will be watching: religious communities to see whether the chanting and signs recede from their doorsteps, and civil liberties groups to see whether the shouts of protesters become criminal defendants.