Bruce's Beach Bill Signed, Initiating Land Return To Black Family

MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — In a significant move toward justice, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law Thursday that will give Los Angeles County the authority to return property once owned by a Black family to their descendants.

"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 Thursday at a news conference at the location Manhattan Beach.

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."

It’s a historic moment, Chief Dwayne Yellowfeather Shepherd, a Bruce family descendant, told KTLA5.

“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,” he added. “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.

"This is a milestone for us, and I want to thank, not only Governor Newsom for signing this bill into law, but Senator [Steven] Bradford for his leadership and the entire state legislature for their unanimous support," Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn said in a statement.

"The work is far from done," Hahn said. "Now that LA County officially has the authority to transfer this property, 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."

Hahn will introduce a motion Friday directing the county to prepare to accept the amended deed from the state. The state has until the end of this year, she said.

Next, it will be time to pursue a process to identify the legal heirs of Willa and Charles Bruce.

The legislation was sponsored by 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.

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.

Editor's note: This story was updated at 5:33 p.m. with additional information throughout.

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