{"id":136858,"date":"2026-02-18T00:32:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T00:32:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/136858\/"},"modified":"2026-02-18T00:32:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T00:32:13","slug":"synagogue-protest-buffer-zone-legislation-undergoing-revision-in-nyc-as-police-chief-jessica-tisch-says-she-has-concerns-jta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/136858\/","title":{"rendered":"Synagogue protest \u2018buffer zone\u2019 legislation undergoing revision in NYC as police chief Jessica Tisch says she \u2018has concerns\u2019 | JTA"},"content":{"rendered":"

A version of this piece first ran as part of the New York Jewish Week\u2019s daily newsletter, rounding up the latest on politics, culture, food and what\u2019s new with Jews in the city. Sign up here to get it in your inbox<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Tisch challenges synagogue buffer zone bill<\/p>\n

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch wants to change a bill that would severely restrict protests up to 100 feet from houses of worship.<\/p>\n

The bill was proposed by NYC Council Speaker Julie Menin after two protests targeted synagogues hosting Israel-related events.<\/p>\n

\u201cCommissioner Tisch has concerns with the initial drafting of the bills, and she is working closely with the speaker\u2019s office to ensure that the language of the bill maintains the NYPD\u2019s flexibility to both protect houses of worship and facilitate First Amendment rights,\u201d NYPD spokesperson Delaney Kempner said in a statement to City and State<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Tisch did not detail her concerns or say whether Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has said he is awaiting a legal review of Menin\u2019s proposal, was involved in the response.<\/p>\n

Both Tisch and Menin are Jewish. After a protest outside Park East Synagogue in November, Tisch apologized to congregants<\/a> and said police efforts \u201cfell short\u201d on protecting their entryway. But she added that protesters \u201chave the right to say things that are incredibly painful to hear,\u201d saying, \u201cI understand that pain, deeply and personally.\u201d<\/p>\n

Menin confirmed to City and State that she was working with the NYPD to amend the bill. She said the legislation \u201cdoesn\u2019t restrict anyone\u2019s right to free speech,\u201d but does \u201crestrict intimidation and harassment as someone enters or exits a house of worship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Four left-leaning Jewish groups have come out against Menin\u2019s bill on free speech grounds<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, more than 30 left-wing groups have mobilized<\/a> to oppose both Menin\u2019s bill and Gov. Kathy Hochul\u2019s proposal of a 25-foot buffer zone around synagogues statewide. Their memo \u2014 whose signatories include PAL-Awda, an organizer of protests outside synagogues \u2014 said that \u201cZionist real estate and settlement agencies\u201d hide their events in houses of worship, \u201crelying on the fact that protests of their activities will be labeled as antisemitic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mamdani appointmentsOcasio-Cortez says US aid to Israel \u2018enabled a genocide\u2019<\/p>\n

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the United States should reevaluate military aid to Israel<\/a> during a Munich Security Conference panel on Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe idea of completely unconditional aid, no matter what one does, does not make sense,\u201d she said. \u201cI think it enabled a genocide in Gaza, and I think that we have thousands of women and children dead that was completely avoidable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ocasio-Cortez is seen as the heir-apparent to Sen. Bernie Sanders and a mentor to Mamdani, both of whom have also accused Israel of genocide. She is rumored to be considering a presidential run in 2028.<\/p>\n

Lasher racks up endorsements<\/p>\n

Assemblyman Micah Lasher, who is running to replace retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler, is collecting endorsements from former rivals.<\/p>\n

State Sen. Erik Bottcher endorsed Lasher on Tuesday<\/a>, following the example of Liam Elkind after both bowed out of the crowded Democratic primary. Nadler has also endorsed Lasher<\/a>, who worships at a synagogue neighboring his on the Upper West Side.<\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

The post Synagogue protest \u2018buffer zone\u2019 legislation undergoing revision in NYC as police chief Jessica Tisch says she \u2018has concerns\u2019<\/a> appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A version of this piece first ran as part of the New York Jewish Week\u2019s daily newsletter, rounding…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2074,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[878,98,100,99,60,58189,2597,2601,9,24,63,87,2593,2596,26120,17934],"class_list":["post-136858","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-alexandria-ocasio-cortez","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-israel","tag-israel-related-controversies","tag-israeli-palestinian-conflict","tag-jews-and-judaism","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-politics","tag-politics-of-israel","tag-politics-of-palestine","tag-synagogue","tag-working-families-party"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=136858"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/136858\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2074"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=136858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=136858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=136858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}