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Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill to return the land to the descendants of a black couple, Willa and Charles Bruce, which was taken from the Bruce in the city of Manhattan Beach, Calif., Nearly a century. Newsom traveled to the area where the Bruces Resort was once located to sign the new law in front of the Bruce family, the media and others who raised awareness of how black Californians have been. driven from a precious property by the sea.
“I am proud, as a son of this state, proud as governor of this state, the most diverse state and the most diverse democracy in the world to be here, Anthony with you,” said Newsom referring to Anthony Bruce, Willa and Charles’ great-great-grandson, and heir to the property, at the signing of the bill.
Newsom added that the event was “for all those families torn apart by racism across the country and around the world.”
Earlier this month, the California legislature unanimously approved a measure allowing Los Angeles County to return property to the descendants of Willa and Charles. The two built and operated a thriving resort that catered to black clients. At the time, it was one of two places in the Los Angeles area where blacks could safely visit the beach, according to the LA Times, as other public beaches were known to be “white only”. .
But with their joy came difficulties, as some white Manhattan Beach residents – including members of the Ku Klux Klan – – resented the resort and harassed black visitors to dissuade them from coming.
In 1924, Manhattan Beach City Council used a prominent estate to strip the Bruce family of their land to create a park.
Ownership was eventually transferred to the State of California. The state then turned it over to the county, with the stipulation that it could not be given or sold.
This type of expropriation of black property was common in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and it contributed to the racial wealth gap that exists today.
“You have proof of entrepreneurial energy that is alive and well in this family, persistence, courage, determination to make things happen,” Newsom said. “We are here today to try to catch up [their loss]. “
Legislation sponsored by Democratic State Senator Steve Bradford, signed by Newsom on Thursday, removes those state restrictions, allowing LA County to return the land. When signing the bill, Bradford –– who is black and represents a neighborhood in southern Los Angeles that borders Manhattan Beach –– spoke about his childhood in southern California and hearing stories about the Bruce family as he walked through Manhattan Beach.
At Thursday’s ceremony, Bradford said people often ask him: What would generational wealth have looked like for the Bruces? “
He said he responded by pointing to white families who have built fortunes. “I said let’s watch the Gettys, let’s watch the Rockefellers, let’s watch the Forbes,” Bradford said. “This is what the generational wealth might have looked like for the Bruce family. But they were refused that because of the racist behavior of this city. “
Bradford criticized the current Manhattan Beach City Council for not apologizing to the Bruces.
In response, Newsom said, “Let me do what Manhattan Beach apparently doesn’t want to do, and I want to apologize to the Bruce family for what was done to them a century ago.”
Janice Hahn, a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Directors, grew up in the Manhattan Beach area and has been a local advocate for the county.
“The county, in fact, owned the very plots that were once the resort town of Bruce. I knew there was one thing to do and that was to return the property, ”Hahn said.
“The law was used to steal this property a hundred years ago and the law today will return it.”
According to family members and historical documents, Willa and Charles Bruce fought to keep their land. After the city seized their property, they filed a lawsuit and were awarded $ 14,500 in damages. Adjusted for inflation, that wouldn’t even amount to a quarter of a million dollars today, according to the New York Times.
Newsom, Bradford and Hahn all gave Kavon Ward credit for leading the cause through the Justice for Bruce’s Beach movement. Ward has now launched a nationwide campaign to help black families reclaim a property called Where Is My Land. She says several people have already contacted her for help with potential cases.
The first official recognition in Bruce history came in 2006, when city council voted to rename a park to Bruce’s Beach, near where their resort once stood. It happened under the leadership of then-mayor Mitch Ward, Manhattan Beach’s first black elected official. He was also present at the signing of the bill and was thanked for his efforts.
The Los Angeles County lifeguard training headquarters, currently located in Bruce’s Beach, could be worth as much as $ 75 million, according to CNN. The county is considering leasing the land to Anthony Bruce once they reach an agreement to hand it over.
Chief Duane Yellow Feather Shepard, of the Pocasset Wampanoag Tribe of the Pokanoket Nation, is a distant relative of Willa and Charles Bruce and a spokesperson for the family, told Yahoo News in July that it was not of a story of repairs, but rather of a story of return. land that was stolen.
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