John,

If you thought protest suppression and surveillance culture couldn’t get any worse, buckle up.

Lawmakers across the country are pushing draconian mask ban bills that strip our rights to privacy, protest, and public health, all at once. With bans already passed in North Carolina¹ and Nassau County, NY,² and additional proposals in LA³, Chicago⁴, and New York State⁵, we need to do everything we can to stop this dangerous trend from spreading. Will you take action and demand lawmakers stop banning masks before it’s too late?

Mask ban bills criminalize masking in public, in groups, or with the “intent to commit a crime,”— and they didn’t just appear overnight. Lawmakers are pushing these policies to target pro-Palestine protests⁶, where people often mask to protect against heavy police surveillance, doxxing, and the unmitigated spread of COVID, thanks to concerted efforts by disability justice advocates.^7,⁸

These bans have disastrous implications:

Mask bans force unwanted exposure to surveillance and facial recognition technology. From biometric scans in airports to facial recognition in schools, it’s getting a lot harder to opt out of giving up our most sensitive data. And although masking alone doesn’t always fool facial recognition⁹, fighting mask bans pushes back against oppressive surveillance culture and rejects the very idea that our faces should be available on-demand.
Mask bans violate our rights to protect ourselves and our communities from the ongoing threats of COVID and Long COVID. It should never be against the law to protect our health, especially as COVID continues to rage¹⁰. Disability justice and (Long) COVID justice organizers raised alarm bells about mask bans from the start, naming them as threats to everyone protecting themselves and others from illness by masking in public.^11,¹² Even with arbitrarily enforced “health exemptions,”² mask ban bills give cops and vigilante citizens the power to force anyone to unmask and risk exposure to illness¹, making mask bans just as much a disability justice and public health issue as they are a privacy threat.
Mask bans stifle our right to protest and give cops a free pass to target and harass marginalized people. Bills that criminalize masking with the “intent to commit a crime” widen the range of tools police have to crack down on protestors, with marginalized protestors often bearing the brunt of the violence. The threat of police violence along with the added health and safety burdens are guaranteed to discourage people from exercising their First Amendment rights.¹³ And with mask bans on the books, police have yet another excuse to harass Black and Brown people for simply existing in public. Marginalized people who mask in public already face harassment, discrimination, and even violence¹¹– mask bans only underscore and encourage the vitriol.
Mask bans violate our basic rights to choose what we wear and how we protect our bodies. When we oppose mask bans, we defend our right to bodily autonomy and resist the increasing pressure to allow politicians to control the personal decisions we make about our lives– from abortion bans to mask bans, no lawmaker should have the right to decide that taking away our choices is what keeps us “safe.”

If you care about any or all of the issues above, i t’s time to take action. We’re partnering with some of the COVID justice and disability justice groups championing this fight¹⁴ to reach as many people as possible and build broad opposition to these dangerous bills. At StopMaskBans.com, you can send letters and make calls to your lawmakers and key local officials with just a few clicks. And if you live somewhere with a current mask ban threat, like New York or LA, you’ll find dedicated tools for applying pressure on your local officials. Will you contact your lawmakers today to demand a stop to these extremist bills?

SIGN THE PETITION

Here at Fight, we know that no one is free until everyone is free. Our fight against surveillance and censorship is deeply intertwined with racial justice, Palestinian liberation, disability justice, and the fight for bodily autonomy. Join us in rejecting mask bans and fighting for a truly safer future for everyone.

In solidarity,
Alex and the team at ❤️Fight

Footnotes:

Fight for the Future, PO Box 55071 #95005, Boston, MA 02205
Don't like these emails? Unsubscribe.