Related Issues
Though policing is one major area in which racial inequality in Manhattan Beach is apparent, it's far from the only one. Here are a few others:
Racism on the City Council Then:
Bruce's Beach
Learn the history of Bruce's Beach below, as recounted in LA Magazine:
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"The first African American residents to buy land on the beach, [Charles and Willa Bruce] purchased lots between 26th and 27th streets. In 1915, they set about building a resort with lodgings, a dance hall, and a café that served African Americans near a patch of private shoreline. They called it Bruce’s Lodge, and it was soon after dubbed Bruce’s Beach. This was big. African Americans were banned from most L.A. County beaches. 'Manhattan Beach had virtually no minority population, and it remained that way for a long, long time,' says local historian Jan Dennis.
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KKK members harassed them, along with any African Americans who went beyond the ropes marking the beach’s boundaries. There were reports of at least one cross burning, abusive phone calls, and bogus restricted parking signs, but the Bruces held on. Then in 1924, the city condemned the property and began proceedings to claim it through eminent domain. Though the Bruces sued, they ultimately lost the property and moved to South L.A.
Recounting his family’s story in a letter to the California Coastal Commission, their grandson, Bernard Bruce, wrote, 'My grandparents moved here from New Mexico. They worked on the railroad. They saved their money…. They lost everything when the city took Bruce’s Beach. How would you feel if your family owned the Waldorf and they took it away from you?'"
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Learn more in the LA Magazine article here, and dive deeper with Dr. Alison Rose Jefferson's article The Politics of Remembering African American Leisure and Removal at Bruce’s Beach. Visit our Action Toolkit page to learn how to take action to enact justice for the Bruce family.
Racism on the City Council Now:
Suzanne Hadley
In 2013, Mayor Pro Tem Suzanne Hadley retweeted the following racist tweet:
As of July 11, 2020, this is still the first tweet on her Twitter page, despite multiple commenters at the July 9, 2020 Community Forum calling her out for this tweet and its racism. When given the chance to speak at the end of the forum, she did not acknowledge the public comments about this tweet and has not removed it since.
The association between Kool-Aid and Black people has long been acknowledged as a racist stereotype, and one that specifically and heinously associates Black people with poverty.
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Hadley's views evidently haven't progressed much since then—even after being presented with overwhelming evidence of racial profiling by police in public comment and in private correspondence by numerous citizens, in our City Council meeting on June 16, she said, “I’ll say it: I don’t think we have a problem [with racism and policing] here in Manhattan Beach.” Hadley has shown her true colors—people who defend casual racist stereotypes like the one she retweeted won't fight for racial justice, and will brush aside racism when and where it occurs. Not only that, they'll actively participate in racism when it serves their ends.
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Here's how Suzanne Hadley reacted to this website:
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She explicitly said that there will be “no defuding of the police, let alone disbanding of the force, while I’m on council in MB.” She went on to say that she supports expanding the police force, and she claims that other councilmembers are as well.
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She explicitly does not support repealing anti-loitering laws (despite the fact that other city councilmembers have stated that the city no longer enforces them) or ending community policing.
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She said that believes that “[i]t does not seem fair to single out the Bruces” for reparations. She also advocated for a "color-blind society," a concept that Black scholars have long argued is detrimental to racial equity and in fact perpetuates racism.
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She said that there is “no more ardent supporter” of Chief Abell than she is.
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She only attempted to reach out in order to discredit the City’s own data and try to distract attention from her record of bigotry and casual racism. In engaging in bad faith with the public, she’s shown her bigotry and racism once again.
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In responding as she has, Hadley has confirmed what we already knew—people who traffic in casual bigotry won't stand up against injustice when and where it occurs.
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Racism has no place on the Manhattan Beach City Council. Speak out against Suzanne Hadley's bigotry—call on her to resign, email her, and submit public comments to upcoming City Council meetings. You can find templates and resources for this on our Action Toolkit page.
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