(NewsNation) — In Philadelphia, wearing a ski mask is now banned in certain public places.
Philadelphia’s City Council on Thursday approved legislation to ban the wearing of ski masks in schools, parks, inside city-owned buildings and on public transit. The ban is punishable by a $250 fine.
Those for the ban believe it may cut down on crime. Those on the other side of the aisle think it’s an attack on free expression.
Councilman Anthony Phillips of Philadelphia’s 9th District supports the ban, insisting it’s a measure residents want.
“Everywhere I went in the city, people literally said we need to be hard on crime and we need to find a way to get individuals who are wearing ski masks to literally take them off,” Phillips told “On Balance” host Leland Vittert on Thursday evening.
Phillips said Philadelphia has experienced people wearing ski masks robbing businesses and others in public places.
“People are nervous and scared of individuals who are wearing these ski masks,” Phillips said.
The ban has drawn criticism from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). An attorney for the ACLU of Pennsylvania told The Philadelphia Inquirer the ban could violate free expression rights and possibly be misused by officers stopping pedestrians.
“This raises some serious concerns constitutionally,” Steve Loney, senior supervising attorney at the ACLU of Pennsylvania, told The Philadelphia Inquirer. “We’ve seen situations where just the knowledge that face coverings are banned in a place can still chill First Amendment activities.”
Phillips insists the council worked with individuals with a number of different perspectives on the legislation.
“We didn’t want to give people a record, a hard record, for wearing a ski mask. What we want to do is use this as a mechanism to detect crime,” Phillips said, later adding that “ski masks are often associated with criminality in the city of Philadelphia.”
Solomon Furious Worlds, a staff attorney at the ACLU of Pennsylvania, said while public safety is an understandable concern, there is no evidence to suggest that ski masks cause or encourage violent crime.
“Giving police the authority to stop civilians without suspicion of unlawful activity is unconstitutional. If city council wants to address the causes of crime, a better strategy would be to put more dollars (and time) towards programs like mental health resources and housing assistance,” Worlds told NewsNation.
According to a city report on gun violence prevention, the rate of violent crimes like shootings and homicides has dropped in Philadelphia.
