III
119THCONGRESS
1
STSESSION S. RES. 47
Designating January 30, 2025, as ‘‘Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties
and the Constitution’’.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
JANUARY30, 2025
Ms. H
IRONO(for herself, Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER,
Ms. C
ORTEZMASTO, Mr. KAINE, Mr. MERKLEY, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr.
P
ADILLA, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, and Mr. WYDEN) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
RESOLUTION
Designating January 30, 2025, as ‘‘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-
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•SRES 47 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;
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•SRES 47 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,
Arizona, New Jersey, and Michigan have already des-
ignated January 30 as Fred Korematsu Day to com-
memorate his lifelong fight for civil liberties and the Con-
stitution: Now, therefore, be it
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•SRES 47 IS
Resolved, That the Senate— 1
(1) designates January 30, 2025, as ‘‘Fred 2
Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitu-3
tion’’; 4
(2) recognizes Fred Korematsu’s bravery and 5
resilience in the face of adversity; and 6
(3) encourages all people to reflect on the im-7
portance of political leadership and vigilance and on 8
the values of justice and civil rights during times of 9
uncertainty and emergency. 10
Æ
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