Mamdani Allies Want Veto For Protest ‘Buffer Zone' Bill

By Katie Honan, The City

April 20, 2026

Labor and other allies of Mayor Zohran Mamdani are urging him to veto one of two City Council bills aimed at restricting protests around educational facilities, saying the “radical overreach” of the bill limits free speech and endangers New Yorkers.

The two “buffer zone” bills were passed on March 26 with the goal of targeting hate crimes across the city, with one bill related to religious sites and the other for schools and education facilities.

The religious site bill passed 44-to-5, a veto-proof majority, but the other passed by a 30-to-19 margin, which the mayor could veto.

The buffer zone laws rose from demonstrations last year outside a pair of synagogues in Manhattan and Queens where some protesters chanted in support of Hamas. The synagogues were hosting an organization that helps American Jews emigrate to Israel and the Israel-occupied West Bank. Critics said Mamdani’s initial comments failed to condemn the pro-Hamas slogans.

The bill focused on “educational facilities,” came after college campuses across the city were rocked by protests against the Gaza war.

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Nearly a dozen organizations sent Mamdani a letter on Friday, imploring him to veto the bill creating security perimeters around schools and other “educational facilities,” with opponents saying the language is so broad that any location could be deemed one.

“By defining ‘educational facility’ as any place where ‘educational programming takes place’ and not solely traditional educational institutions, 175-B functionally subjects any building in this city to the proposed law, including the more than 200 public libraries,” the letter said.

Demonstrators use flares near the City College pro-Palestinian encampment shortly before the camp was cleared by the NYPD, April 30, 2024. Credit: Sajina Shrestha/NYCCity News Service

It was signed by the steering committee of the People’s Majority, along with the union representing CUNY professors, United Auto Workers Region 9A, Desis Rising Up and Moving and other organizations.

“The broad reach of the legislation again means that the NYPD must create a plan for just about every building in this city,” the letter said.

Speaker Julie Menin said last month the bills will stop hate crimes. “The increase in hateful acts across the city is absolutely abhorrent, and we have to do something about it,” she said.

Free speech advocates protest at City Hall against a bill to create a protest buffer zone around schools and houses of worship, Feb. 25, 2026. Credit: Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY

Mamdani can veto the bills within 30 days of their passage in the Council, giving him until April 25. He said Thursday he’s still weighing his options.

“I’ve heard from a number of New Yorkers about their concerns about aspects of this legislation,” Mamdani said. “And I will be making a decision on that shortly.”

This press release was produced by The City. The views expressed here are the author’s own.