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Historical Plaque at Bruce's Beach Stolen

The plaque, acknowledging the racist history of the beach and the seizure of land from a Black family, was erected last year and its theft has sparked controversy and disappointment.

  • A plaque recognizing the racist history of Bruce’s Beach in Manhattan Beach, California, has been stolen. The monument was erected last year to honor the history of the beach, where a Black couple built a popular resort before the local government seized their land in the 1920s.
  • The site received national attention in recent years as LA county moved to return the valuable land to descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce. The family sold the land back to the county last year for around $20m.
  • The stolen plaque at Bruce’s Beach park, located just up the hill from the beachfront land, acknowledged the history of “harassment, intimidation, and discrimination by some, including City Hall” against Black property owners in the area.
  • Manhattan Beach’s mayor apologized to the Bruces and Black residents when unveiling the monument last year, but some argued the text whitewashed the history and that the city has failed to address the ongoing exclusion of Black residents from the area.
  • The plaque is one of numerous historical Black monuments recently reported stolen or vandalized in the US.
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