The seventh, and newest, marker on the Louisiana Civil Rights Trail will be unveiled later this week at the former Bogalusa home of Robert “Bob” Hicks.
The house, located at 924 Robert “Bob” Hicks Street, was the base of operations for the Bogalusa Civil Rights Movement. It was a regular meeting place for Officers of the Bogalusa Civic and Voters League (BCVL) and the local Chapter of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE).
The marker unveiling will take place at 11:15 a.m. at the Robert “Bob” Hicks House.
The house was a safe place for civil rights workers and served as an emergency triage station. The breakfast room became the communications center for the Bogalusa Chapter of the Deacons of Defense and Justice, an armed self-defense group who protected civil rights workers from violence. The living room was an unofficial office for the civil rights attorneys who pioneered groundbreaking lawsuits in education, housing, and employment.
In August 2021, the 1967 Bogalusa to Baton Rouge March led by Civil Rights Activist A.Z. Young, with Robert “Bob” Hicks and Gayle Jenkins, was recognized on the Louisiana Civil Rights trail with a marker at A.Z. Young Park adjacent to the Louisiana State Capitol.
The Civil Rights Markers are striking life-sized metal life-like figures cut from steel and stand over six feet tall and weigh over 200 pounds. The Louisiana Civil Rights Trail is supported in part by an African American Civil Rights grant from the Historic Preservation Fund administered by the National Park Service, Department of Interior.
