Editorial | It’s time for New York to reinstate the mask ban

Unless you’re sick or have an underlying health condition that makes you vulnerable to almost every virus, there is simply no reason for someone to wear a face mask in public .

More than five years removed from the COVID-19 pandemic, we are long past the point of necessity for public mask-wearing. The mask ban that was lifted during the outbreak to protect New Yorkers was never reinstated in full, and current events should compel New York state, including Gov. Kathy Hochul, to finally make certain the masks come off for good for anyone who does not truly need them.

Today, we see people wearing masks for the commission of mischief and mayhem on both sides of the law.

On one side are protesters who have marched through the streets and congregated on college campuses, wearing masks to protect themselves from being identified by anyone, including law enforcement. Many of these masked protesters have committed crimes from trespassing onto private property to hate-motivated harassment, vandalism, and even assault.

Protesters in Columbia University on the ground, with their hands up, as police move in to break up the Hamilton Hall siege on April 30, 2024.Screenshot from bodycam video courtesy of NYPD

On the other side are ICE agents who roam the halls of Federal Plaza’s immigration court, and now the streets of the city, to apprehend immigrants. They are masked up, the federal Department of Homeland Security claims, to guard themselves from being “doxxed” — the practice of individuals combing the internet to find the real identities of individuals and expose their backgrounds, including sensitive information such as home addresses.

What the masked protesters and ICE agents have in common is a mutual belief that masks provide anonymity to do whatever they want, and a simultaneous fear of being held accountable for anything wrong or illegal they may do.

It also suggests that they recognize their actions may be morally wrong and possibly illegal, yet they seek the protection of the mask to shield themselves from responsibility.

That’s not how it should ever work.

Public demonstrations have long been a part of New York’s history, and generations of unmasked New Yorkers have marched peacefully without incident — even at the risk of being identified with causes that might seem, at the time, unpopular. The NYPD and other law enforcement agents have always kept the city safe without ever needing to wear masks to do so.

It’s time for people to stop hiding behind the masks and show themselves for who they are and what they truly believe. If you are not brave enough to show your face, then don’t do anything that may expose you to the negative consequences of bad actions.

Either way, Governor Hochul and the state Legislature must act to ban public mask-wearing, with appropriate medical exemptions to those who truly need to wear them.