The Brief

A Washington D.C.-based health care clinic that performs abortions has filed a lawsuit against Beverly Hills, accusing city officials of colluding with a landlord to prevent them from opening a location there.

Beverly Hills Mayor Julian Gold, City Manager Nancy Hunt-Coffey, Deputy City Manager Keith Sterling, City Attorney Laurence Wiener and Chief of Police Mark Stainbrook are all named in the lawsuit filed last week by DuPont Clinic.

The clinic was set to open on Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills and had signed a lease with Douglas Emmett Inc. But the lawsuit alleges the city and the landlord colluded to rescind the lease after caving to pressure from anti-abortion protesters, despite “the right to abortion enshrined in the California Constitution.”

In a statement, the city said the decision to rescind the lease agreement wasn't theirs.

"The City is already home to medical offices that offer reproductive health services and has been very clear on its position of strongly supporting a person’s right to choose," the statement added. "The decision to rescind DuPont Clinic’s lease was not made by the City of Beverly Hills."

In September 2022, the lawsuit states that DuPont entered into a lease agreement with Douglas Emmett, and a month later began discussions with the city about the clinic.

“The City expressly confirmed to DuPont that the City approved of DuPont's intended use of the Premises, and DuPont began planning the construction of its clinic,” the lawsuit states.

According to Jessica Corpuz, an attorney for DuPont Clinic, the city and landlord were aware of the services the clinic planned to provide.

However, Corpuz added, everything changed when a group of anti-abortion protesters got wind of the intended use of the clinic.

“That's really when the city got involved to an extent that they had not been prior,” she said.

First, the lawsuit alleges, the city held up permits.

Wiener, the city attorney, then asked the clinic to sign a letter stating that they will not violate any California laws, according to the lawsuit.

“That is not something that is required of any other medical practice, that would not have been a request if DuPont Clinic was opening a dentist practice,” Corpuz said. “He was doing this specifically because they're an abortion provider.”

Eventually, Corpuz said, the city “begrudgingly” issued the permits.

But Corpuz said police then sent a letter the landlord warning that the clinic would attract violence and vandalism and the safety, putting the security of other tenants at risk.

“Once the chief of police sent that letter, Douglas Emmett clearly felt that it had no option and that it bowed to the pressure of the city and it sent a letter to DuPont quote-unquote rescinding the lease,” she said.

A representative for Douglas Emmett said the company "has a well-established policy of refraining from discussing leasing matters with external entities. We will respond following the legal framework."

The lawsuit also outlines meetings city officials allegedly had with anti-abortion protesters.

The city, Corpuz added, told the protesters that the clinic would not open and that the landlord rescinded the lease — information she said was shared on the eve of a big protest.

DuPont Clinic also filed a lawsuit against the landlord in August, in part, citing a letter it received from Douglas Emmett attorneys who said part of the reason for rescinding the lease offer was due to the discovery that the clinic would be providing “late term abortions” and attract potentially unsafe conditions.

“DuPont Clinic provides an absolutely critical service,” Corpuz said. “These are people who often can't get treatment elsewhere. These are people who need critical life-saving care, and DuPont Clinic planned to open here in order to provide that.”

Following the Dobbs decision and the reversal of Roe v. Wade, California emerged as a haven for abortion rights. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed laws protecting pregnant people’s rights to an abortion, even requiring insurance companies to cover the procedure. Protections were also enshrined in the state constitution.

At the time of the Dobbs decision, Beverly Hills also lit up City Hall in pink and council members unanimously supported a resolution in favor of abortion rights.

“Beverly Hills really advertised itself as a place that was safe for abortion care. And Douglas Emmett, the landlord, was fully supportive of this mission,” Corpuz said. “Everyone says these things, but when it came down to actually supporting an abortion clinic, the city tripped over itself instead of supporting this clinic.”

For the last three years, the record store and music venue Healing Force of the Universe has been operating on a sleepy street corner not far from Pasadena City College. Nearby businesses include a shoe repair store, a nail salon and several auto shops.

“We're kind of in a dead corner,” owner Austin Manuel said. “No offense if anybody lives here, but not a very foot-trafficked area, kind of a hard place to have a store.”

In spite of the location, Manuel said Healing Force has become a home away from home for musicians and music fans. One of them is Bobby Bradford, a jazz trumpet legend who lost his house and personal archive in the Eaton Fire. He performs regularly at the venue. (Healing Force has also partnered with LAist on fire recovery events.)

Its current location is set to close this month, but Manuel and his team are already raising funds to cover a move to another space: G-Son Studios in Atwater Village. The repurposed ballroom was the Beastie Boys' home base when they recorded their classic albums Check Your Head and Ill Communication. Run-DMC and Biz Markie stopped by at one point, and Beck also laid down tracks for his album Odelay there.

Inside Healing Force's space in Pasadena.

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The vibe

Healing Force sells records, of course, but these days it’s more of a nighttime performance space. Manuel said he wants people to feel comfortable striking up conversations after a show.

“I grew up in the church in the South, and I was like, ‘How do I design this so that it feels like a Southern church lady could come in here and feel welcome?’" Manuel said. “ I didn't want it to be too cool.  I wanted it to feel kind of suburban in a way.”

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Though the name might call to mind a cult slogan — and Manuel said they lean into that aesthetic on purpose — it’s actually a reference to the 1970 album Music Is the Healing Force of the Universe by saxophonist Albert Ayler.

At the venue, “people can kind of get … into a meditative zone,” Manuel said. “After the [January 2025] fires, it felt so good to come back together in this room and feel the healing of community.”

Healing Force's stage setup.

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The performances

The shows Healing Force puts on share a common thread: They’re meant to promote peace and relaxation, as well as deep, careful listening on the hi-fi sound system. But they’re an eclectic mix of genres. On one night, you might see L.A. spiritual jazz band Phi-Psonics, who turned a residency at the venue into a live album, Expanding to One.

On another night, you might catch a spaced-out electronic set, an up-and-coming singer-songwriter or a group of session musicians who’ve played with the likes of Paul Simon, Elton John and Lucinda Williams.

About the fundraiser

With the new space on Glendale Boulevard, Manuel said, Healing Force would triple its capacity for concerts, get a bar space and be closer to other venues in Northeast L.A.

“If 1,000 people gave $25, we would get there,” Manuel said – though he also said most people have been giving more.

You can read more about the fundraiser and donate at Healing Force’s GoFundMe.

See the Pasadena space before it closes

The venue is still open at 1200 E. Walnut Street and is holding events through this Halloween weekend. You can see their events calendar on their website.

The racist DNA of Jim Crow discrimination may be embedded in your housing documents.

The language in housing documents that restricts sale or use of a property only to a person of the white race is called a “restrictive covenant,” and in California the practice goes back to the 19th century and continued into the mid-20th century. While housing discrimination persists, the practice was found unconstitutional in 1948.

California counties are reporting mixed progress in meeting the demands of a 2021 law to excise the language from property records.

According to Sylvia Manzo, deputy recorder in the Orange County Clerk-Recorder’s office, the county finished the job in March of this year, removing racist language from more than 27,000 property documents with the help of computer software.

This 1924 property document from Bakersfield includes racist language limiting use of the property in question to people of "the white or Caucasian race."

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L.A. County is far from done. It says that with the help of an outside company hired in 2024, 50 million pages will be examined yearly, which would take about 10 years to finish the job.

Public agencies could use the public’s help.

Language examples

Here’s a 1924 example from a property in Bakersfield. The text reads, “That the lands herein conveyed shall never, at any time, be sold to or rented to or occupied by any person not of the white or Caucasian race.”

Or this language from a 1936 document relating to a Costa Mesa property: “That said premises shall not be sold, conveyed, rented, or leased to, or occupied by any person of African, Mexican, or Asiatic descent.”

How to get it taken out

The Restrictive Covenant Modification Form is at the heart of the effort to remove the racist language from housing documents. Each county has its own process. Some charge a fee; others don’t. Some require a notary certification for the signature; others don’t.

L.A. County:

Registrar-Recorder officials recommend these steps:

• Highlight or underline the unlawful provision on the recorded document
• Complete the Restrictive Covenant Modification Form
• Submit the form and the recorded document by email: RCM@rrcc.lacounty.gov or in person at the Norwalk headquarters at 12400 Imperial Highway in Norwalk
• Mail instructions are here.

Orange County:

The Orange County spokesperson says there may be some properties not caught by its software and urges the public to report them. Here’s the form

Riverside County:

Here’s the Riverside County form

San Bernardino County:

Here’s the San Bernardino County form

San Diego County:

Here’s the San Diego County form

Santa Barbara County:

Here’s the Santa Barbara County form

Ignoring the racist language in property documents, some say, reinforces the legacy of segregation, while taking steps to remove restrictive covenant language is a way individuals and organizations can repudiate policies that sought to discriminate.