Determined to fight for their rights, Bob Hicks, Charles Sims, A.Z. Young, and others had taken leadership of the (all-black) Bogalusa Civic and Voters' League. On February 21, 1965, with the help of three activists from the Deacons for Defense and Justice based in Jonesboro, Louisiana, they founded the first affiliated chapter of that African-American self-defense organization. Other leaders of the Deacons were Bert Wyre, Aurilus “Reeves” Perkins, Sam Bonds, Fletcher Anderson, and others. They mobilized many war veterans within the black community to provide armed security to civil rights activists and their families. Expecting a violent summer, the State Police established an office in Bogalusa in February 1965.
Determined to fight for their rights, Bob Hicks, Charles Sims, A.Z. Young, and others had taken leadership o,f the (all-black) Bogalusa Civic and Voters' League. On February 21, 1965, with the help of three activists from the Deacons for Defense and Justice based in Jonesboro, Louisiana, they founded the first affiliated chapter of that African-American self-defense organization. Other leaders of the Deacons were Bert Wyre, Aurilus “Reeves” Perkins, Sam Bonds, Fletcher Anderson, and others. They mobilized many war veterans within the black community to provide armed security to civil rights activists and their families. Expecting a violent summer the State Police established an office in Bogalusa in February 1965.