The invisible rope
Culture Club SB founder Allison Hales. Photo by Jessie Lee Cederblom Angelo Cassiano learns how to play beach volleyball. Photo by Jessie Lee Cederblom by Mark McDermott and Ryan McDonald A rope went up on the beach below Bruce’s Lodge on June 23, 1912, the very first Sunday the resort that welcomed Black beachgoers to Manhattan Beach was in operation. Though the man responsible for roping off of the beach was one of the city’s founders, George Peck, the rope itself was hardly just symbolic. It was accompanied by “No Trespassing” signs and deputy constables who told Black beachgoers they could not cross the beach. The owners of the resort, Charles and Willa Bruce, along with the dozens of guests who’d come to Bruce’s Lodge, responded peacefully, yet resolutely. Black beachgoers walked a half mile, around the ropes, constables and no trespassing signs to get to the water. “I think they believed in God in the sense that you can love your neighbor,” said Anthony Bruce, the great, great grandson of the Bruces. “They did not have hate in their hearts….Willa and Charles could have lashed out. They had so many opportunities. The best response was to be humble about your circumstances…
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