Manhattan Beach was once home to Black beachgoers, but the city ran them out. Now it faces a reckoning

A century ago, Bruce’s Beach in Manhattan Beach was one of the most prominent Black-owned resorts by the sea. “Bruce’s Beach was an injustice in our town’s history,” said Gary McAulay, president of the Manhattan Beach Historical Society. They came to California, bought property, enjoyed the beach, made money,” said Alison Rose Jefferson, a historian and author of the book “Living the California Dream: African American Leisure Sites during the Jim Crow Era.” “They did what every other Californian was doing during that time.” But white neighbors resented Bruce’s growing popularity. “They know that what happened to Charles and Willa is still happening every day in different parts of the world.” :: Kavon Ward, who moved to Manhattan Beach three years ago with her newborn daughter, said she knew she wasn’t welcome when a woman at Polliwog Park asked which family she was nannying for. “I have no problem with teaching the history of Bruce’s Beach, but if you only teach what happened nearly one hundred years ago, and do not teach about the progress we have made in those hundred years, then it seems to me the goal is to create hatred and divisiveness.” City Mayor Richard Montgomery said he is open to redoing the plaque and has said as early as 14 years ago that an apology was long overdue.