Monroe chapter president of NAACP steps down

MONROE, La. (KNOE) -Cliff Thomas is stepping down as president of the NAACP Monroe/Ouachita Parish branch after two years of service.

Thomas said he is proud of the work done during his tenure, including building relationships with law enforcement.

“I go out with law enforcement when we have shootings and crime in our community. I’ve invited them in. We’ve stood shoulder to shoulder to show our people that we’re not anti-law enforcement as president of the NAACP,” Thomas said.

Moving to Mainline Ministry

Thomas said he is stepping into a new role as president of Mainline Ministry, an organization he said is built to respond faster and more directly.

He said the decision came after feeling limited by the NAACP’s process for taking official action on urgent issues, which requires decisions to pass through multiple levels before the organization can formally respond.

“That’s exactly why I felt that my hands were tied. You know, it’s a good organization. I have great respect for the NAACP, but our people need help. When your house is on fire, you don’t need a committee to think about whether they’re going to come put that fire out,” Thomas said.

Through Mainline Ministry, he says the focus will be on voter registration advocacy and working with legislative bodies to address issues such as people being removed from voter rolls.

“And then when people have concerns, we’re going to ask them if they feel free to come to a Mainline Ministry to get the help that they desire. And when we give them help, it’s going to be gloves off because the times are hard now. And I want to make sure our people get real help in a quick type of way,” Thomas said.

NAACP’s reach in northeast Louisiana

The NAACP’s reach in northeast Louisiana spans from Monroe to Grambling State University. De’Quincy Allen, Mr. NAACP for Grambling State University, said the organization has had a significant impact.

“It helped me break out of my shell. It helped me introduce myself to people around campus and be able to help them as well. We have held a lot of community service, which was very vital to me and my lifestyle because my organization, Alpha Phi Omega, is a national service fraternity,” Allen said.

Allen added he has not met Thomas personally but has seen the NAACP’s impact firsthand.

“I think, as a Black man, you’re always going to have a connection with the NAACP, no matter what you do or where you go,” Allen said.

The new NAACP president will be Councilman Verbon Muhammad Sr.