A resolution recognizing the importance of establishing a national "Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution".

III 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. RES. 19 Recognizing the importance of establishing a national ‘‘Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution’’. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JANUARY 30, 2023 Ms. HIRONO (for herself, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. CASEY, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mr. KAINE, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. MERKLEY, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. PADILLA, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, and Mr. WYDEN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary RESOLUTION Recognizing the importance of establishing a national ‘‘Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution’’. Whereas Fred Toyosaburo Korematsu was born on January 30, 1919, in Oakland, California, to Japanese immigrant parents; Whereas Fred Korematsu attempted to enlist in the United States National Guard and the United States Coast Guard after the United States entered World War II and was rejected because of his Japanese ancestry; Whereas after the signing of Executive Order 9066 on Feb- ruary 19, 1942, by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, which authorized the forced imprisonment of 120,000 people of Japanese descent into prison camps, the major- VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:49 Jan 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR19.IS SR19 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •SRES 19 IS ity of whom were American citizens, Fred Korematsu re- sisted that infringement of American civil liberties and attempted to continue his life as an American citizen until he was arrested, convicted, and incarcerated at a concentration camp in Topaz, Utah; Whereas, in 1944, Fred Korematsu appealed his case to the United States Supreme Court, which ruled against him, declaring in Korematsu v. United States that Japanese incarceration was a ‘‘military necessity’’ rather than an egregious act of racial discrimination; Whereas, in 1980, President Jimmy Carter created the Com- mission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civil- ians (CWRIC), which concluded in 1983 that the forced removal and imprisonment of people of Japanese ancestry was motivated by ‘‘race prejudice, war hysteria, and a failure of political leadership’’; Whereas during this time, researchers at the University of California, San Diego uncovered documents from the United States Department of Justice in which intel- ligence agencies, including the FBI, the FCC, and the Office of Naval Intelligence, denied that Japanese-Ameri- cans ever committed wrongdoing, but which were never presented to the United States Supreme Court during Korematsu v. United States; Whereas following the conclusion of the Commission on War- time Relocation and Internment of Civilians and the find- ings on governmental misconduct, Fred Korematsu re- opened his case, and on November 10, 1983, the United States District Court of Northern California in San Francisco overturned his conviction; VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:49 Jan 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR19.IS SR19 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •SRES 19 IS Whereas Fred Korematsu’s courageously fought injustice by challenging the constitutionality of Executive Order 9066, and his lawsuit remains an important lesson about the fragility of individual civil liberties during a time when the Nation is experiencing threats to its national security; Whereas Fred Korematsu continued to fight injustice and de- fend the liberties of Muslim people when, in 2003, he warned in an amicus brief that the United States ex- treme national security measures following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, were reminiscent of the mistakes of the past that undermined American civil lib- erties, including the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798, the suspension of habeas corpus during the Civil War, the prosecution of dissenters during World War I, the Red Scare of 1919–1920, the interment of people of Japanese descent during World War II, and the era of loyalty oaths and McCarthyism during the Cold War; Whereas the democratic character of the American people will be nourished and enhanced by opportunities for civic edu- cation on the significant challenges that have been posed to our Constitution; Whereas a day of annual national reflection on how the Fred Korematsu quest for justice is important to educating the American people about preserving civil liberties and the principle of equality before the law; and Whereas the States of California, Florida, Hawaii, Virginia, and Arizona have already designated January 30 as Fred Korematsu Day to commemorate his lifelong fight for civil liberties and the Constitution: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Senate— 1 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:49 Jan 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR19.IS SR19 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •SRES 19 IS (1) recognizes the importance of establishing a 1 national ‘‘Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties 2 and the Constitution’’; and 3 (2) encourages all people to reflect on the im- 4 portance of political leadership and vigilance and on 5 the values of justice and civil rights during times of 6 uncertainty and emergency. 7 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:49 Jan 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\SR19.IS SR19 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS