Eye for an Eye: The Role of Armed Resistance ... - Freedom Archives

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that vehicle would be approached from the front and the rear and
checked to see who it was. In most cases it would be met head on
with headlights . . .with two people in a car. And generally being
approached by 4 people in a pickup truck from behind . . .two of the
people would generally be in the cab. And two would generally be
in the back with the guns raised over the cab.
As in Harmony, the system included signals for incoming friendly vehicles,
including blinking your headlights or "honking" the automobile horn a certain
number of times. The signal would change periodically, in case intruders had
observed the signal and figured out its purpose . According to Watkins, the
evening hours were divided in shifts, and community residents volunteered for
different shifts . Only adult males participated in the armed watch of the commu-
Besides the general watch of the community, particular attention was
given to the homes of Mileston residents who were considered local Movement
leaders, people who were housing summer volunteers, churches and other institu-
tions identified with the Movement . Describing the watch on targeted people and
places, a Mileston resident, Shadrach Davis, remembered :
. . .we would have to watch different ones houses here at night. . . .
Two or three of us would set in the trucks wit' guns at this driveway.
Then we'd leave an' ride over to the other areas of the community.
. . one, and two o'clock at night. . . .n' see how was
everythang goin .' 33
COFO organizers believed Holmes County, particularly Mileston, was a
(relatively) safe area. Just like Harmony, COFO activists believed they could rely