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

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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 military 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 .
Cooper stated " We had 30.06. We had anti-M.35 mm, We had all kinds of pistols and different kinds of rifles, whatever." We had whatever it takes to do what was necessary and they knew this." On only one occasion in 1968, when Evers ran for U .S . Senate, was their any actual shooting between members of the defense team and white racists . Coming home one evening during the campaign, nightriders and Cooper traded shots. Given the constant amount of threats and the activity of Evers in the state in violent Mississippi . Only one shooting incident speaks to the effectiveness of his security.s While Evers won the loyalty of many Black Mississippians, his leadership annoyed activists of other Movement organizations in Mississippi, particularly the young militants of SNCC, and the national hierarchy of his own organization, the NAACP SNCC activist believed Evers undermined their efforts and attempted to establish his hegemony in the Mississippi Movement. This failure to gain ap- proval from the national leadership for many of his statements or decisions aggravated the national NAACP hierarchy. NAACP national leaders, among other things, were aggravated by Evers's outspoken positions on the efficacy of armed resistance . This was one characteristic (of many) that distinguished Medgar from Charles . Whereas Medgar "played the trickster," willing to be conciliatory, Charles was the "Bad. Negro," often openly speaking of the necessity and capabil- ity to meet violence with violence. One example of this is a speech made by Charles Evers in Nashville, Tennessee during a NAACP Freedom Fund Dinner in February of 1964. On that occasion Evers stated :
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Eye for an Eye: The Role ofArmed Re
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This is an authorized facsimile, ma
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ABSTRACT Although, the Civil Rights
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Light and Power on their spirits Mo
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Eye for an Eye: The Role ofArmed Re
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction 1 Ch
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armed resistance in Black struggle
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Review of the Literature The Litera
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from advocates of armed self-defens
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the Movement. Each of these authors
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whom were committed to and practice
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and enforced against Black humanity
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transcript" of insurgency that has
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Chapter One: Historic Armed Black R
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to Kongolese armies. The use of arm
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people who were antagonistic to the
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nation, and to promise Africans fre
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coons to chattel status. Rather tha
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South legal . The Seminoles prepare
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more than slaves or mercenaries . A
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maroons, calling themselves the "Ki
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Adams county, Mississippi, in 1861
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The same year abolitionist and fugi
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separate Black army with its own "c
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soldiers defended their sisters and
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Southern whites were not willing to
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die where they stood before they wo
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teers throughout Hinds county. Real
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supremacy was not secure without th
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hours . While in each case there we
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of Alabama, to be armed at their me
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initiated gunfire after hearing rum
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apists . In February of 1948, Mrs.
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U .S . Army, was known as a sharpsh
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11 . Kenneth Wiggins Porter, The Ne
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31 . Edwin S. Redkey, AGrand Army o
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North Carolina Press, 19903, 44-45
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in the Age of Jim C,Eow, states tha
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S 1,614 for whites . Close to two-t
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ers his father would not allow him
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ist mob continued their intimidatio
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unit designed after the Mau Mau of
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the 1954 U .S . Supreme Court decis
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he refused to persuade the thirty r
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Meredith to "Ole Miss." Because of
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eturned home around midnight . Myrl
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11 . C.O . Chinn, interview by the
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crime . He was abducted by a mob of
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Chapter Three: The Non-Violent Move
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as the popular leader of this new o
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ments for protest based on moral an
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ticed some form of self-defense cov
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and NAACP organizer. Moore had assi
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On Moore's recommendation, Moses fi
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house, under pillows, under chairs
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lacks to challenge Amite's white po
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including Medgar Evers and Roy Wilk
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practice of self-defense . To warn
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Mississippi officials, charging the
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Anyone participating in the march h
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and harassed, local police did not
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Blacks alike were amazed that the g
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ase for SNCCICOFO and the Mississip
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with its own identity in the state
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military soured after Chinn openly
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Besides this group of protective gu
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for younger activists to challenge
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9, 1984, 1-B- 10B ; Chuck McDew int
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47 . Ibid, 178-179 ; Dennis, interv
Page 139 and 140: demonstrate that disenfranchised Mi
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Page 143 and 144: themselves and advising SNCC activi
Page 145 and 146: massacre as implied by Hall . Other
Page 147 and 148: to be a force in the Southern movem
Page 149 and 150: CORE also was engaged in debate con
Page 151 and 152: Schwerner, and one Freedom Summer v
Page 153 and 154: Goodman . Another element of this c
Page 155 and 156: Black history, Movement politics, a
Page 157 and 158: Harmony school and bused Harmony's
Page 159 and 160: economic arena was also displayed i
Page 161 and 162: on, in Brown's words, the "organiza
Page 163 and 164: There was a fine line . There was a
Page 165 and 166: (formerly known as Stokley Carmicha
Page 167 and 168: Union Baptist Church, led by its pa
Page 169 and 170: terrorist violence was initiated by
Page 171 and 172: Reeves family had a history of bein
Page 173 and 174: and Movement activists of McComb .
Page 175 and 176: friend by pretending he was only pa
Page 177 and 178: and cohesiveness of each community.
Page 179 and 180: lenge the credentials of the segreg
Page 181 and 182: 5 . Hollis Watkins, interviewed in
Page 183 and 184: 28 . Dovie Hudson, interviewed in B
Page 185 and 186: 56 . Bob Moses, interview by the au
Page 187 and 188: turn followed a different posture t
Page 189: cials were uneasy about Charles bec
Page 193 and 194: Charles Evers's stated: He encourag
Page 195 and 196: the boycott. Arange of coercive tac
Page 197 and 198: thereby silenced and neutralized by
Page 199 and 200: crushed when a police car led a Kla
Page 201 and 202: Robert Williams . Thomas had read a
Page 203 and 204: of the Deacons in Bogulusa. The lea
Page 205 and 206: McKeithen also called for negotiati
Page 207 and 208: settlers . Natchez was the hub for
Page 209 and 210: would spark an acceleration of acti
Page 211 and 212: Even though the police officers wer
Page 213 and 214: U.S . Constitution [including the S
Page 215 and 216: e known, you better figure on dying
Page 217 and 218: situation that day: These pecker wo
Page 219 and 220: of the Deacons capabilities, provid
Page 221 and 222: unless City government acted favora
Page 223 and 224: Black community to enforce its deci
Page 225 and 226: claiming victory , announcing the m
Page 227 and 228: teams to enforce the boyott1 In Cla
Page 229 and 230: argument between Shields, and a whi
Page 231 and 232: Jackson also led to near uprising b
Page 233 and 234: implementing the Natchez model, Rud
Page 235 and 236: Okolona, Tupelo, and Byhalia. The U
Page 237 and 238: 18 . Porter, Interview with Deacon
Page 239 and 240: 44 . Ibid ; Young, interview by aut
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73 . Ibid. 74 . James Scott, interv
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CONCLUSION ". . ..the armed liberat
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existence of armed resistance in th
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Some may argue that the evidence pr
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ofthe Movement and doesn't apprecia
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it was necessary for the Black comm
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the white power structure but also
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Significance of "Eye forAn Eye" It
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4 . Comel West, Progb= Deliverance
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Herman Leach, July 30,1994, Yazoo C
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Correspondence Letter from Sundiata
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Carson, Clayborne, et al. The Eyes
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Jordan, Winthrop, Tumult and Silenc
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Payne, Charles, 1've Got the Light
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DissertationslTheses Barksdale, Mar
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