Descendants of the owners of Bruce Beach have chosen to sell the historic property to L.A. County for $20 million. According to reports, Marcus and Derrick Bruce, who received ownership of the stolen land after it was returned to their family last year, have informed county officials of their intent to sell.
“This fight has always been about what is best for the family, and they feel what is best for them is selling this property and finally rebuilding the generational wealth they were denied for nearly a century,” Janice Hahn, chairperson of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors tweeted on Tuesday (Jan. 3).
The Bruce Family has informed the County of Los Angeles that they have decided to sell the Bruce’s Beach property back to the County for nearly $20 million– which is the estimated value of the property.
— Janice Hahn (@SupJaniceHahn) January 3, 2023
Hahn also addressed the Bruce family’s decision in a statement to the Los Angeles Times, equating the sale to reparations while voicing her hope that the county’s willingness to work with the Bruce family will influence other legislators across the nation.
“They feel what is best for them is selling this property back to the county for nearly $20 million and finally rebuilding the generational wealth they were denied for nearly a century,” Hahn said. “This is what reparations look like and it is a model that I hope governments across the country will follow.”
![[L-R] Sandra Bruce, activist Kavon Ward, and Derrick Bruce, Chief Duane](https://www.vibe.com/wp-content/themes/vip/pmc-vibe-2021/assets/public/lazyload-fallback.gif)
Chief Duane “Yellow Feather” Shepard (R) raises his fist into the air alongside (L-R) Sandra Bruce, activist Kavon Ward, and Derrick Bruce during a ceremony to return ownership of Bruce’s Beach to the descendants of a Black family who had the land seized from them through eminent domain a century ago on July 20, 2022 in Manhattan Beach, California. – Los Angeles county officials returned the California beachfront property to the descendants of a Black family who had the land seized from them a century ago, in a move hailed as a step towards atoning for racial injustice. Willa and Charles Bruce purchased the land in 1912 and after adding a few other adjacent plots created a beach resort, which came to be known as Bruce’s Beach, catering to Black residents, who had few options at the time for enjoying the California coast.
PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images
In July, Los Angeles county officials transferred the deed to Bruce Beach to the rightful owners’ descendants, which occurred during a beachfront ceremony attended by the Bruce family. The transfer came following a campaign to have the land, which was purchased by Charles and Willa Bruce in 1912, returned a century after it was unfairly seized by the Manhattan Beach City Council during the 1920s. Ownership of the deed was later transferred to the state of California in 1948.
At the time, Senator Steven Bradford, who spoke at the ceremony, acknowledged that while the damage done to the Bruce family is irreparable, the transfer of ownership back to the owners’ descendants is a show of progress he also hopes will become the norm as the country continues to wrestle with the specter of reparations.
“It will not reverse the injustice,” Bradford admitted. “But it represents a bold step in the right direction, it represents a template for other states to follow.” Prior to their decision to sell, the Bruce family had previously agreed to lease the land to L.A. county for 24 months for an annual rent of $413,000 including operation and maintenance costs.
Lois Bruce Johnson, a Bruce family descendant, views a plaque marking Bruce’s Beach on June 29, 2022 in Manhattan Beach, California. The beachfront property was once a seaside resort owned by Charles and Willa Bruce, a Black couple, which catered to African Americans. Amid the Jim Crow era, the city claimed the property in 1924 through eminent domain while vastly underpaying the couple for the land. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has approved the plan to return ownership of the prime beachfront property to the descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce.
Mario Tama/Getty Images
