The point isn't whether you're willing to violate an extra law. It's that pre-COVID, if someone walked towards a bank wearing a mask, they're going to get noticed and attract attention well before they start committing their violent crime, increasing the chance that they're caught.

Yes, but when it's illegal, it's much easier to quickly identify the law breaker before the trouble starts.

True, I guess maybe they were more to target groups who wore masks and were/are known for breaking laws. I think some were passed (and definitely at least proposed) to target antifa, and I believe some were also passed to target the KKK.