Spotlight on History
50th Anniversary of the Bogalusa Civil Rights March
August 10, 2017, marks the 50th anniversary of the start of the Bogalusa Civil Rights March. The 105-mile march, which was organized by civil rights activist A.Z. Young, started in Bogalusa on August 10, 1967, and ended with a rally on the steps of the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge on August 20, 1967. Reporter Ron Hunter of WWL-TV in New Orleans covered this historic event as it happened. You can see his news reports, as well as later interviews with people involved in the events surrounding the march.
Louisiana: A History
Watch a clip from LPB’s Louisiana: A History to get an understanding of the events in Bogalusa that led to the civil rights march.
WWL-TV Reports
A. Z. Young Announces Plans for March from Bogalusa to Baton Rouge (July 28, 1967)
Ron Hunter Report from March & Interview with A. Z. Young (August 12, 1967)
Governor John McKeithen on Arresting Lawbreakers During March (August 12, 1967)
Baton Rouge Mayor Woody Dumas Discussing the March (August 14, 1967)
A. Z. Young Interview During March (August 15, 1967)
State Police Superintendent Thomas Burbank on Recommending National Guard Assistance for March (August 15, 1967)
Adjutant General Erbon Wise on Sending Troops to Baton Rouge for March (August 15, 1967)
Interviews
Governor John McKeithen / Louisiana Legends
Camille Gravel / Oral Histories
Victor Bussie / Oral Histories
To see all of the stories in the Bogalusa Civil Rights March topic, click here.