We don’t need to curb protests. We have police.

Manhattan: Last week, I testified before the City Council to oppose one of the problematic “buffer zone” bills highlighted in a recent op-ed (“Why we support the City Council’s Safe Access plan,” Feb. 26). These bills would further empower the NYPD to restrict First Amendment-protected speech around schools and houses of worship.

Any bill that seeks to curb the right to peaceful protest without a compelling government interest is unlikely to survive a First Amendment challenge, and our union, which represents faculty and staff at CUNY, particularly opposes Intro 175. It would sweep almost 3,000 educational institutions, including the 25 CUNY colleges, under its purview. The NYPD deputy commissioner for legal affairs repeatedly emphasized during his testimony that the NYPD already has the authority to safeguard New Yorkers at public demonstrations. Police routinely place demonstrators behind steel barriers, enforce free passage in and out of buildings, and ensure the flow of pedestrians around sidewalk protests. Intro 175 is unnecessary to preserve public safety and is clearly intended to create buffer zones free of free speech in the public space in and around schools. Despite an amendment hastily added before the hearing, the bill would interfere with workers’ ability to lawfully picket their employers and would impede teachers and students from voicing their opinions about matters of public concern.

As history and multiple legal settlements have shown, granting additional authority to the NYPD is unwise. Nonviolent protest is a hallmark of a free and democratic........

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