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

Reverend R.L.T. Smith, whose store had been attacked by nightriders several
times . Reverend Smith was also known to be prepared to defend himself. Charles
Evers remembered "Reverend Smith carries a gun and won't hesitate to use it . He
would pray and shoot . . .or more likely shoot and pray." Given Smith's leading role
in the local NAACP and the previous attacks on his business, he was given spe-
cial attention by the local armed defense team. Visiting Movement leaders like
Martin Luther King Jr., Roy Wilkins, Ruby Hurley, Gloster Current and Thurgood
Marshall also received security and armed protection from the Jackson para-
military group ."
Though most of these young men were untrained, with little formal mili-
tary or police experience, they proved to be effective in protecting Evers and other
leaders . Without much formal training, these young men relied mostly on their
wits and "street" experiences to aid them in their security work . Concerning their
orientation, Cooper stated "We had some fellows that had military experience, but
we really didn't respect that . We based our defense on surprise attack, guerilla
warfare and 'alley' ." In other words, Cooper and his comrades utilized deception
to confuse potential assassins and nightrider. Aware of electronic surveillance on
the NAACP and its security force, the group developed when discussing informa-
tion pertaining to their defense work on the telephone . They never made advance
reservation at hotels for dignitaries they were protecting as not to alert potential
attackers and to limit the time assassins had to prepare . The informal Jackson
defense team was also well armed, which probably caused potential combatants to
be extremely cautious about engagement . The Jackson defense team utilized their
personal weapons and also pooled their resources to purchase more weapons .