Defending the Right to Worship: Why the DOJ’s FACE Act Lawsuit Matters

On Monday, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act (FACE Act) against two extremist groups—the Party for Socialism and Liberation-New Jersey (PSL-NJ) and American Muslims for Palestine-New Jersey (AMP-NJ)—and several individuals, including Tova Fry, Altaf Sharif, Matt Dragon, and Eric Camins, who violently disrupted Jewish worship at Congregation Ohr Torah in West Orange, New Jersey.

This case is not only about accountability for one night of terror on November 13, 2024. It is about the federal government affirming its duty to protect the most basic civil right: the freedom to worship without fear.

The FACE Act prohibits force, threats of force, or physical obstruction designed to interfere with religious worship. The defendants in this case did exactly that. They broke through police lines, stormed synagogue property, assaulted Jewish worshipers—including placing a congregant in a chokehold and tackling him down a hill—and shouted menacing threats like “You’re next!” while blowing vuvuzelas inches from ears and deploying stink bombs. All of this was aimed at intimidating Jews and preventing them from participating in a religious event that included prayer, a memorial service for Rabbi Avi Goldberg, Torah study, and educational activities on the Jewish obligation to live in Israel. This was not protected protest. It was violence, pure and simple, carried out against Americans exercising their First Amendment rights.

For the Jewish community, the trauma is all too familiar. Since the October 7 massacre in Israel, synagogues across the United States and Canada have been subjected to escalating campaigns of harassment, intimidation, and violence. These incidents are not isolated. They are part of a disturbing trend: extremist groups like PSL-NJ and AMP-NJ deploying increasingly aggressive tactics to silence Jews, to disrupt religious life, and to make public Jewish identity unsafe.

That is why this lawsuit matters. By invoking the FACE Act, DOJ is demonstrating that the federal government has both the authority and the will to respond. As the complaint states, “Unless restrained, Defendants are likely to continue violating the FACE Act, given their history of targeting Jewish religious events with violence and intimidation.” Synagogues are sacred spaces, not battlegrounds. Every American deserves to know that when they walk into a house of worship—whether a synagogue, mosque, or church—they are entering a place of safety, dignity, and peace. The FACE Act was designed precisely to protect this principle, and its enforcement here is a powerful signal that mob violence and intimidation will not be tolerated.

Critics may argue that such actions fall under free speech protections or that the FACE Act, originally aimed at clinic access, is being misapplied. But the law draws a clear line: peaceful assembly is sacred, while physical assault and obstruction cross into criminal territory. In a time when extremists increasingly cloak violence under the guise of “protest,” it is critical to reaffirm this distinction. Peaceful dissent is a hallmark of our democracy. Violent disruption of religious services is not. By bringing this case, DOJ is reaffirming that our laws are not abstract promises. They have teeth. And when hate groups cross the line, they will be held accountable.

There is also a broader message here: the protection of Jewish Americans is inseparable from the protection of American democracy itself. If mobs can storm a synagogue and chase Jews from prayer without consequence, then the promise of religious liberty is hollow. If, however, the full weight of federal law is brought to bear, then the message is unmistakable: the United States will defend its citizens against intimidation and violence, and the Jewish community will not stand alone.

The DOJ’s FACE Act lawsuit is not just a case in New Jersey. It is a test of whether our nation will live up to its constitutional values in the face of growing extremism. The right to worship freely is foundational. And the federal government is right to say, in no uncertain terms: if you target Jews at prayer, you will be held accountable.