Federal officials on Monday reportedly filed a lawsuit against pro-Palestinian demonstrators who disrupted a November protest outside a New Jersey synagogue, marking a rare application of a law originally designed to protect abortion clinics.
The suit, brought under the 1994 Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, targets two organizations and several individuals for their actions outside Congregation Ohr Torah in West Orange, about 20 miles west of Manhattan.
Harmeet Dhillon, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, highlighted the unprecedented nature of the action, noting that it appears to be the first time the FACE Act has been applied to protesters at a house of worship.
The protest coincided with a real estate fair promoting homes in Israel and in settlements in the West Bank.
“No American should be harassed, targeted, or discriminated against for peacefully practicing their religion,” U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement. “Today’s lawsuit underscores this Department of Justice’s commitment to defending Jewish Americans — and all Americans of faith — from those who would threaten their right to worship.”
The FACE Act, originally passed amid a surge in violence against abortion providers, including the 1993 murder of Dr. David Gunn, bars the use of force or obstruction at reproductive health centers and houses of worship. Historically, prosecutions under the law have focused on anti-abortion demonstrators.
Under President Trump, the Justice Department curtailed such prosecutions, citing the “weaponization” of law enforcement, and Trump pardoned several anti-abortion activists involved in the 2020 blockade of a Washington clinic.
Monday’s lawsuit alleges that the pro-Palestinian demonstrators interfered with worshippers’ civil rights, physically assaulted attendees, and used plastic horns, known as vuvuzelas, to disrupt the event.
The complaint names two groups — American Muslims for Palestine New Jersey and the Party for Socialism and Liberation in New Jersey — along with three individual participants. Efforts to reach the organizations for comment were unsuccessful, and the individuals could not be located.
The case notably excludes two pro-Israel counterprotesters, who face separate charges of aggravated assault and related offenses against the pro-Palestinian demonstrators. A spokesperson for the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office declined to comment on pending prosecutions.
One of the defendants, Moshe Glick, expressed confidence that the federal lawsuit would fail. “The charges are baseless,” he said in an email, noting that his legal team anticipates their dismissal.
The Trump administration’s selective enforcement of the FACE Act, historically protective of conservative causes such as religious freedom and anti-abortion advocacy, underscores a broader commitment to safeguarding faith-based institutions from political violence.
By invoking the statute against protesters outside a synagogue, the Justice Department signaled that threats to religious practice, regardless of the ideological orientation of the offenders, would face federal scrutiny.
The West Orange case reflects rising tensions around Middle East conflicts spilling into U.S. communities and highlights the federal government’s willingness to extend legal protections for houses of worship, even when protesters claim political motivation.
It also demonstrates how federal law, historically aligned with conservative religious protections, can be applied in broader contexts to defend civil liberties and maintain public order.
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