Rear door latch

Guys, I am trying to remove my rear driver side door latch. I have the interior panel off, the rods to the interior handle/lock unhooked, and the three torex screws removed from the jamb. My question is how to remove the rod from the exterior handle from the latch assembly. It is connected with a black plastice piece that appears to snap apart somehow. I do not want to break it. Does anyone have any experience with this or have access to a shop manual?

I swapped out the latch on my rear door last year. It was hard to get it out, but not impossible. The black plastic piece DOES need to come off. I nearly broke mine too, but it should just snap apart. It's hinged with plastic on one side. In any case, if you purchase a new latch from a Chevy dealer, it should come with a new plastic piece (so it doesn't matter if you break the old one, assuming you're buying a new one).

If you have any other questions, let me know.