This true life drama takes place in1965, shortly after the Civil Rights Act. Despite the Act, African-Americans in Bogalusa are still considered as second-class citizens, their human rights continually violated by the white power structure in general and the local KKK branch in particular. "Deacons for Defense" is an all-black defense squad dedicated to patrolling the black quarter of town and safeguarding its citizens from the more violent parts of "white backlash."