DECISION and ORDER I. INTRODUCTION In July 2021, plaintiff Amanda David (“Ms. David” or “plaintiff”) purchased a home in the Town of Caroline, New York. Dkt. No. 1. She lived there with her three children and operated her business, Rootwork Herbals, LLC (“Rootwork”). Id. Shortly after she and her family moved in, Ms. David’s next-door neighbor Robert Whittaker, Jr. (“Whittaker” or “defendant”), began harassing her, her children, and her business’s customers. Id. Defendant’s conduct continued for nearly three years and culminating in criminal charges. Id. On May 23, 2024, after nearly three years of Whittaker’s harassment, Ms. David commenced this federal civil rights action. Dkt. No. 1. Defendant moved pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure (“Rule(s)”) 12(b)(6) to dismiss plaintiffs’ complaint for failure to state a claim. Dkt. No. 8. Thereafter, plaintiff amended her complaint and defendant’s motion was denied as moot. Dkt. Nos. 11-12. Ms. David amended her complaint, joining plaintiff Rootwork to the action. Dkt. No. 11. Ms. David and Rootwork’s (collectively, “plaintiffs”) amended complaint asserts claims for discrimination and/or retaliation under the Fair Housing Act of 1968 (the “Fair Housing Act”), 42 U.S.C. §§1981, 1982, and related portions of New York State law. Id. On July 24, 2024, Whittaker moved pursuant to Rules 12(b)(1) and (6) to dismiss plaintiffs’ amended complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and for failure to state a claim. Dkt. No. 13. The motion has been fully briefed, Dkt. Nos. 14-15, and will be considered on the basis of the submissions without oral argument. II. BACKGROUND Ms. David is a forty-eight-year-old African American woman. Am. Compl. 5. She identifies as queer.1 Id. Ms. David is a gardener and community herbalist. Id. 9. She is also the creator, manager, and sole owner of Rootwork. Id. Through Rootwork, plaintiff provides “herbal medicine and access” to Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (“BIPOC”) as well as queer, and transgender individuals in the community. Id. Plaintiffs host community gatherings, courses, and certificate programs in-person on her property. Id. In 2020, Ms. David and her three children began renting a home in the Town of Caroline, New York (the “Town”). Id. 8. Ms. David purchased the family home in 2021. Am. Compl. 18. Living directly adjacent to plaintiffs’ property is Whittaker. Id. 15. Shortly after purchasing her home, plaintiffs became the target of Whittaker’s racial and sexual epithets. Id. 19. According to the amended complaint, defendant made these offensive racial and sexual statements to Ms. David and her children whenever he encountered them outside. Id. For instance, defendant expressed skepticism that plaintiff could afford her home and stated that the father of her children “must be rich.” Id. Later that year, Ms. David had a fence installed around her property for privacy. Am. Compl. 20. But the fence did not dissuade Whittaker. Id. 23. Instead, he began using a step ladder to climb above the fence-line to continue to shout racist and sexist insults to Ms. David and her children. Id. From here, Whittaker’s insults only escalated. He began to harass David’s children, even threatening to beat Ms. David’s eldest son with a stick or a bat. Am. Compl. 27. Ms. David reached out to the Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office to report the incident. Id. 29. Whittaker was later charged with criminal harassment in the second degree. Id. 30. In November 2022, Whittaker took to firing his gun in his yard after a group of teenage customers arrived at plaintiffs’ property for a Rootwork workshop. Am. Compl. 31. Defendant continued to hurl racist and sexual epithets at plaintiff. Id. 38. Thereafter, defendant began tampering with various sections of Ms. David’s fence. Id.
32, 36. Defendant was later charged for a second time with criminal harassment in the second degree. Id. 41. Whittaker’s conduct escalated. He began placing various signs in the window of his garage that directly faced the Davids’ home. Am. Compl.
