Have you ever heard of Bruce’s Beach? Neither have I until today. California lawmakers decided Thursday to allow the return of prime beachfront property to the descendants of a Black couple who were stripped of their resort amid racist harassment a century ago.
Charles and Willa Bruce purchased the property in Manhattan Beach, CA in 1912, and opened the first beach resort on the West Coast for black people. Back then people of color were not allowed to use the same beaches that White people visited, and segregation was normal. The couple decided to build a lodge, café, dance hall and dressing tents with bathing suits for rent. Brilliant idea right?
Fake 10 minute parking signs were put up, and beach goers would return to the air being let out of their tires. Eventually the KKK tried to burn it down, and with the constant harassment from racist White people, the couple got ran out of town. Manhattan Beach used eminent domain to seize the land in 1924, ostensibly for use as a park. Instead, the property languished until it was eventually transferred to the state in 1948, then transferred to Los Angeles County in 1995.
For years the Bruce family has been fighting to get their land returned to the family. Duane Yellow Feather Shepard is a descendant that has been fighting for many years. “What we want is restoration of our land to us,” he said, “and restitution for the loss of revenues.” His prayers have finally been answered. “Bruce’s Beach became a place where Black families traveled from far and wide to be able to enjoy the simple pleasure of a day at the beach,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn said in April when the county announced plans to return the property. The state law that legislators sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday to transfer the property to the couple’s descendants must be approved. The transfer would also have to be approved by county supervisors.
You can learn more about the fight for Bruce’s Beach below.
