LA County Takes Next Steps To Return Bruce’s Beach To Descendants

MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — It's happening. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Tuesday took legal steps to return the property known as Bruce's Beach to the descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce.

Under the new legal authority granted by a recently passed California law, supervisors are now closer to the first and most significant move towards reparations for Black families in the U.S.

“The Governor signing SB 796 was a historic and pivotal moment in our effort to return Bruce’s Beach, but let’s be clear, that bill did not actually transfer the land,” Supervisor Janice Hahn said.

More work is needed to achieve justice, she added.

“That is the sole responsibility of the County, and specifically, the responsibility of this Board," Hahn said. "My goal over the next several months will be to transfer this property in a way that not only works for the Bruce family, but is a model that other local governments can follow. Returning Bruce’s Beach can and should set a precedent for this nation and I know that all eyes will be on Los Angeles County as this work gets underway.”

The move to transfer the land is a historic one not only in California but in the U.S. And, it could set a precedent, Hahn said.

The process is still underway.

“I am proud to support the return of Bruce’s Beach to the Bruce family heirs," Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell said. "Today’s motion gives the County the authority to accept the land back from the state and ensure we have a process for vetting potential heirs of the Bruce family. I am committed to doing all we can to get this right."

“This action provides us with the first of hopefully many opportunities to repair past harms," Mitchell said. "I look forward to the County continuing to actualize our anti-racist policy agenda with significant steps like this.”

The motion was authored by Hahn and co-authored by Supervisor Holly Mitchell and approved unanimously Tuesday. The motion instructs the County Chief Executive Office to do three things:

1. Coordinate with the State Department of Parks and Recreation to receive the amended deed (in line with SB 796). (Note: The State has until the end of 2021 to amend the deed)
2. Prepare and present to the Board the resolution of acceptance for the amended deed upon receipt
3. Pursue an expeditious process in determining legal heirship, in cooperation with the Treasurer and Tax Collector's Public Administrator, in order to identify and vet potential claimants and report back to the Board when the vetting process is concluded.

After legal heirs are confirmed, the County can enter official discussions with the family to determine how best to transfer the property.

Last week, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law to begin the process of returning the beachfront land. Surrounded by descendants and community leaders, the move was a significant step in the fight for racial justice.

"As governor of California, let me do what apparently Manhattan Beach is unwilling to do, and I want to apologize to the Bruce family for the injustice that was done to them a century ago," Newsom said.

It's one of the first reparations bills signed into law in the U.S. and goes beyond symbolism, he added. Returning the land is part of economic empowerment.

"I really believe this. This can be catalytic," Newsom said. "What we're doing here today can be done and replicated anywhere else."

Chief Dwayne Yellowfeather Shepherd, a Bruce family descendant, described why it was a historic moment.

"Today is a good day," he said. "It's a good day, it's a milestone for African Americans, and it's a milestone for America because people of all walks of life have stood up and said, 'We're not going to tolerate this anymore in California or in this country.'"

"This is not reparations what we're getting here," Shepherd said. "This is restitution for a criminal act."

The California state Senate voted unanimously earlier this month to move the bill to the governor's desk. The legislation was sponsored by Sen. Steven Bradford and removes state restrictions from Los Angeles County's beachfront property once owned by the Bruce family. The existing state restrictions currently limit Hahn's ability to transfer the County property. SB 796's passage allows Hahn to move forward with her effort to return the property to the surviving descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce.

What happens next?

Some next steps include pursuing a process to identify the legal heirs of Willa and Charles Bruce.

In 1912, Willa and Charles Bruce, a Black couple, purchased the beachfront property in Manhattan Beach and built a resort that became known as Bruce's Beach. It was one of the few places where Black residents could go to enjoy a day at the beach because so many other local beaches did not permit Black beachgoers. Only one other allowed Black people — the Inkwell in Santa Monica. The Bruces had a restaurant, dance hall, bathhouse and novelty shop.

The Bruces and their customers were harassed and threatened by white neighbors including the KKK. Eventually, the Manhattan Beach City Council moved to seize the Bruces' property as well as surrounding property using eminent domain in 1924, purportedly to build a park. The city of Manhattan Beach took possession of the property in 1929, and it remained vacant for decades.

The section of the seized property closest to the beach, including the lots owned by Willa and Charles Bruce, was years later transferred to the state and in 1995 transferred to Los Angeles County. The lots that the Bruces owned are now the site of the Los Angeles County Lifeguard Training Headquarters.

In April, Hahn announced her intention to return the Bruce's Beach property to the descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce and that she had asked Bradford to introduce legislation — now known as SB 796 — to remove state restrictions on the property and allow her to do just that.

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