Rodney Jones says complaints may have led to his removal as local NAACP president

Rodney Jones, former leader of the Manatee County branch of the NAACP, acknowledged Tuesday a letter he received from the NAACP’s Florida State Conference president that could have led to the suspension letter from the national chapter.

Jones said he received the letter from the president of the Florida State Conference of the NAACP, Adora Nweze, shortly after he was forcibly removed from a Bradenton City Council meeting and arrested May 8.

When reached by email, Nweze said it was an internal disciplinary matter and had no further comment.

“She sent me a cease and desist letter to ask me to stop all proceedings with law enforcement here and I kept going. I kept going because I was not acting as the president of the NAACP. I was acting as myself a private citizen, exercising my First Amendment Constitutional right and my right to protect my daughter, protect my neighborhood, protect my family, and I don’t need the NAACP’s permission to do that,” Jones said.

Jones has previously voiced complaints about the Bradenton Police Department and did so again Tuesday. He was forcibly removed by officers during a May 8 Bradenton City Council meeting when he exceeded the public comment time limit while addressing council members with his complaints against law enforcement.

During a news conference held outside his home that was posted to YouTube on May 10, Jones said he was speaking not as the NAACP’s chapter president, but as a community member.

He held up the letter, which he said was from the president of the Florida State Conference of the NAACP directing him to cease and desist his proceedings with law enforcement.

“Madam president, if you think that I’m going to stop what I’m doing I will not. This is not the NAACP’s affair, it is mine as a parent and as a community member. And I will not follow nor will I respect this,” Jones said.

He then ripped up the letter.

Jones was asked by reporters if he thought he would lose his position as president of the Manatee County chapter of the NAACP.

“I’m going to make them get rid of me,” Jones said.

On June 20, president and CEO of the NAACP, Derrick Johnson, wrote a letter to Jones, directing him to cease and desist the office of president of the Manatee County branch of the organization and informing Jones his membership and position as president were suspended.

Between the letters from state and national branches, Jones said he also filed complaints with the organization against other state and local NAACP leaders who he said “do nothing.”

“What they did was send me a cease and desist letter, I filed a complaint and the next thing I get is a suspension letter without ever addressing the complaint,” Jones said.

Jones said Tuesday he didn’t feel supported by the NAACP and is organizing a boycott.

Jones has 15 days from the date of the letter from Johnson to request, in writing, a hearing with the NAACP.

Tuesday, Jones said plans to respond but he is not sure how, since the letter gave no specifics.

“I had requested a corrective action if you guys are saying that I’m doing, something please give it to me in writing so I can respond to it and correct it. That was probably about a year ago. I have not received any information of any wrongdoing, any corrective action. Not one thing from the NAACP,” Jones said.

After his arrest, Jones launched his own citizens review board for Bradenton Police Department internal investigations.

Such a board was brought up at a subsequent city council meeting, but eventually there was not enought support on the city council to create one.

This story was originally published July 2, 2019 at 2:21 PM.