Santa Monica killed a Black entrepreneur's dream in 1960. Now it wants to make amends

Key Facts

The dream of a Black entrepreneur to open a hotel and beach club for Black patrons in Santa Monica in the 1950s was smashed by a racist land grab by the city through eminent domain.
Beginning in 1922, white homeowners formed the Santa Monica Bay Protective League to shut down a dance hall and block any development by the Black community in the city, according to the book “Living the California Dream: African American Leisure Sites During the Jim Crow Era” by historian Alison Rose Jefferson.
(Los Angeles Times) Before the building was seized, White placed large signs announcing his intentions to open a club and hotel that would cater to Black patrons in an attempt to ward off theft of the land by the city, Santa Monica City Councilmember Caroline Torosis said before Tuesday’s vote.
The city has been in touch with White’s family and the organization known as Where Is My Land, which is dedicated to identifying and reclaiming property taken from Black people.