Las Vegas NAACP chapter suspended

Chapter president James Rogers and other top branch officers will receive letters this week informing them that they have been relieved of all duties, said Mark Clack, national field secretary for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

"All of the officers and executive committee members are out," Clack said Friday from the group's Baltimore headquarters. "Everyone who was elected last year is out. We are saying, 'You are gone."'

With their ouster, the chapter falls under the leadership of Edward Lewis, president of the Tri-State Conference, which includes Nevada, Utah and Idaho.

Lewis said he plans to run a tight operation and manage the chapter until new elections are held, possibly in December.

"I don't view this as being a simple task," Lewis said. "I am going to make sure everybody follows the rules as they are set down. And I have some specific instructions from the national office as to what they want me to do."

The suspensions came after the NAACP's national board of directors discovered that Las Vegas and several other chapters had not filed their financial reports, Clack said.

Branches that incorrectly filed reports also were suspended. The 1996 reports are the most recent reviewed.

Rogers was out of town and could not be reached for comment. Other officers and executive committee members did not return calls or declined comment.

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