Celebrating Fred Korematsu
We need this civil rights hero’s lessons more today than ever
This year, Asian American civil rights advocates will commemorate Virginia’s first-ever Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution to honor the Asian American civil rights leader who challenged injustice during World War II and whose memory inspires us today.
In 1942, at the age of 23, Korematsu refused to go to the government’s incarceration camps for Japanese Americans. After he was arrested and convicted of defying the government’s order, he appealed his case to the U.S. Supreme Court, which ruled against him and upheld the legality of the government’s incarceration of Japanese Americans. Four decades later, in 1983, Korematsu’s conviction was overturned.
Virginia joins a growing list of states that have adopted January 30 — Korematsu’s birthday — as Fred Korematsu Day. The push for a national holiday continues, led by Korematsu’s daughter, Advancing Justice | AAJC board member Karen Korematsu.
Fred Korematsu Day gives us the opportunity to remember and reflect on one of the most blatant forms of racial profiling in U.S. history. As we see eerily familiar racially-charged rhetoric resurface around Muslims and Muslim Americans, it’s more important than ever to recall the mistakes of our country’s past and be vigilant to avoid recreating them.
The holiday also allows Americans to recognize Asian Americans’ role in helping to shape the nation we live in today. When so many of our contributions have been forgotten or go ignored or unseen, we must work hard to preserve the memory and lessons of the figures who have truly changed the course of our collective history who continue to inspire us to stand up for what’s right today.
Take a moment this weekend to learn more about Fred Korematsu, about the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, and the current political climate in our country. You can also support Advancing Justice | AAJC’s work to combat injustice as well as the mission of the Fred Korematsu Institute by making a gift today.
