Susan D. Greenbaum, Afro-Cubans in Ybor City: A Centennial History (Tampa: [s.n.], 1986)

Rodriguez was born in Tampa to Cuban parents who were members of Marti-Maceo. He started his career as a teacher but decided to go to law school at Howard University after returning from World War II to a segregated South where nothing had changed. At Howard he became involved with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and was appointed special counsel for the southeast region in 1952, when he returned to Tampa. In 1954, following the Brown decision, he filed numerous legal actions to desegregate schools and recreational facilities in Florida. He unsuccessfully ran for office as juvenile court judge and member of the city council.