Korematsu v. United States-1944
Fred Korematsu was arrested at the age of 23 for refusing to relocate to the government's internment camp. He had plastic surgery to change his appearance and stay with his girlfriend but was later arrested and charged for violating the exclusion orders. The Supreme Court justified its actions due to military necessity in 1944. 40 years later he challenged his conviction, not only for himself but for everyone that was wrongfully imprisoned during WWII. JACKSON, J., Dissenting Opinion MR. JUSTICE JACKSON, dissenting. "Korematsu was born on our soil, of parents born in Japan. The Constitution makes him a citizen of the United States by nativity, and a citizen of California by [p243] residence. No claim is made that he is not loyal to this country. There is no suggestion that, apart from the matter involved here, he is not law-abiding and well disposed. Korematsu, however, has been convicted of an act not commonly a crime. It consists merely of being present in the state whereof he is a citizen, near the place where he was born, and where all his life he has lived." |
"...As long as my record stands in federal court, any American citizen can be held in prison or concentration camps without a trial or a hearing... Therefore, I would like to see the government admit that they were wrong and do something about it so this will never happen again to any American citizen of any race, creed or color." (1983) |