Private Conspiracies and the Constitution: A Modern Vision of 42 U.S.C. Section 1985(3) 64 Texas Law Review 1985-1986

64 Tex. L. Rev. 527 (1985-1986)
Private Conspiracies and the Constitution: A Modern Vision of 42 U.S.C. Section 1985(3)

handle is hein.journals/tlr64 and id is 547 raw text is: Private Conspiracies and the Constitution:
A Modem Vision of 42 U.S.C.
Section 1985(3)
Ken Gormley*
Table of Contents
I. Introduction: The Southern States After the Civil War... 530
II. Early History of the Ku Klux Klan Act ................. 534
III. The Dreadful Decade: The Ku Klux Klan Act Falls
into D isuse ............................................. 541
IV. Modern Revitalization of Section 1985(3) ................ 546
A. Limited to Race Discrimination? ..................... 550
B. State Action Requirement? ........................... 552
C. Source of Congressional Power? ...................... 555
V. The Supreme Court's Decision in United Brotherhood of
Teamsters, Local 610 v. Scott ............................ 556
A. State Involvement Required When First Amendment
Right Is at Stake .................................... 560
B. Conspiracy Against Nonunion Workers Motivated by
Economic Animus Does Not Fall Within the Sweep of
Section 1985(3) ..................................... 562
VI. A Modern Vision ....................................... 564
A. Private Conspiracies Do Not Involve State Action ...... 565
B. Equal Protection Means Equal Protection .......... 566
1. The Reconstruction Congress' View of State
Action .......................................... 566
* Visiting Assistant Professor, University of Pittsburgh School of Law.
To the extent this Article may serve to make the law clearer, or more even-handed for those
who dream of equality, even in the smallest way, it is dedicated to Professor Archibald Cox and
Judge Donald E. Ziegler, two patient teachers.
All the mistakes are proudly dedicated to my parents, William and Elena Gormley, who taught
me a long time ago that a multitude of imperfections is the sign of a happy man.
To my research assistant, Phil Fabiano, King of the modem footnote, I commend these words:
Quando cose non vanno ben6, va alla casa da nonna.
Finally, many thanks to my friends and family, who took time out to help so that I would not
disgrace myself on my first law review article: Professor Welsh White, Professor Phil Mullock,
Professor Jules Lobel, Dean Mark Nordenberg, Professor Bill Gormley. And special thanks to
Laura Kozler, who despite my love for the painful tedium of law, is still willing to marry me this
June.

527

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.

Short-term subscription options include 24 hours, 48 hours, or 1 week to HeinOnline.

What Is HeinOnline?

Purchase Access

Contact Us

Log In

NEED HELP?

CONTACT US

Get started

Subscribe to our Newsletter