Palm Springs’ Displaced Black And Latino Families Tentatively Settle For $5.9M

In 2021, the city formally apologized to former section 14 residents.

In the 1960s, The city of Palm Springs forced several Black and Latino families out of a neighborhood known as Section 14. The town and former residents agreed to a tentative settlement agreement of $5.9 million to compensate former residents and their descendants for the financial and emotional trauma they endured.

The neighborhood sat on a square-mile Native American reservation where more than 2,000 Black and Mexican American families once lived. 86-year-old Margarita Genera once lived in the neighborhood with her parents and two siblings before they were displaced.

“We have been fighting for a long time to tell our story,” Genera said to The New York Times.

Palm Springs Mayor Jeffrey Bernstein issued a statement acknowledging the city’s role in displacing former residences of section 14.

“The City Council is deeply gratified that the former residents of Section 14 have agreed to accept what we believe is a fair and just settlement offer,” Bernstein said.

The council will vote to allocate $10 million toward a first-time homebuyer assistance program. The committee will also propose an additional $10 million for a community land trust and a monument to commemorate the neighborhood’s history. If approved, $1 million will go towards supporting small businesses in the community.

Pearl Devers, president of the Palm Springs Section 14 Survivors, lived in the neighborhood with her family until she was 12; her father helped to establish the city’s first NAACP chapter. The community activist recalls her family leaving their home abruptly. In a statement reported by The Associated Press, Devers said that the settlement will not erase the hardships they endured, but it does help to bring closure to the families. “While no amount of money can fully restore what we lost, this agreement helps pave the way for us all to finally move forward,” she said.