Fred Korematsu

Fred Korematsu was a welder who lost his job after the attack on Pearl Harbor when the Boilermakers Union expelled all Japanese American members. Korematsu decided to resist the mass removal orders, and planned to leave the state. On May 30, 1942, Korematsu was arrested for violating the exclusion order after failing to report to Tanforan Assembly Center. When Korematsu was contacted by an ACLU lawyer looking for a test case, he decided to fight the evacuation order. Korematsu lost his Supreme Court case in 1944. In the early 1980s, his case was reopened after the discovery of a crucial document indicating that in the original 1944 case, the federal government had lied to the high court. The conviction was vacated by U.S. District Judge Marilyn Hall Patel in 1983.

World War II (231)
Resistance and dissidence (84)
Supreme Court cases (16)
Fred Korematsu (77)

Related articles from the Densho Encyclopedia :
Ernest Besig, Final Report, Japanese Evacuation from the West Coast, 1942 (book), Korematsu v. United States, Fred Korematsu, Edward L. Parsons, Marilyn Hall Patel, A.L. Wirin

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77 items
Memo to Herbert Wechsler from J.L. Burling (ddr-densho-67-104)
doc Memo to Herbert Wechsler from J.L. Burling (ddr-densho-67-104)
Memo to Herbert Wechsler from J.L. Burling protesting the way the War Department portrayed DeWitt's Final Report in the Korematsu brief. The Justice Department thinks a clear stance on the falsity of the report should be made. Burling suggests that the War Department purposely went against the Justice Department concerning the report.
Excerpt from the Korematsu brief (ddr-densho-67-107)
doc Excerpt from the Korematsu brief (ddr-densho-67-107)
Excerpt from the Korematsu brief defending evacuation on the premise that racial discrimination was not used. Blames Japanese for being unassimilated and too connected to Japan. Compares Japanese with Germans and Italians and discusses why the government did not evacuate them. Justifies internment because Japanese were able to leave camps for work.
Memo from John Burling to Philip Glick (ddr-densho-67-116)
doc Memo from John Burling to Philip Glick (ddr-densho-67-116)
Memo from John Burling to Philip Glick on a WRA memo called "validity of detention." Burling critiques the WRA memo -- written in connection to the Korematsu brief -- because of its reliance on DeWitt's Final Report. States that it is also based on heresay and rumors that were never proved to be true, such as …
Memo regarding the Korematsu brief (ddr-densho-67-105)
doc Memo regarding the Korematsu brief (ddr-densho-67-105)
Memo to Cooley from J.L. Burling on the Korematsu brief. Burling wants to insert a paragraph into the brief showing that Japanese internment was for the protection of Japanese people.
Pacific Citizen, Vol. 67, No. 25 (December 20-27, 1968) (ddr-pc-40-51)
doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 67, No. 25 (December 20-27, 1968) (ddr-pc-40-51)
Selected article titles: "In Honor of Pioneers from Japan to America" (p. 1), "The Sorry Memory: More Are Questioning the Constitutionality of Korematsu Case -- Low Point in U.S. History for Japanese Americans" (p. 2), "Political Behavior of Issei and Nisei" (p. 2), "How Japanese Are the Japanese Americans?" (p. 21), "Hayakawa 'hottest' Issue in S.F. …
Pacific Citizen, Vol. 94, No. 23 (June 11, 1982) (ddr-pc-54-23)
doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 94, No. 23 (June 11, 1982) (ddr-pc-54-23)
Selected article titles: "Interned JAs 'Must Be Compensated': Goldberg" (p. 1), "Former Government Attorney Urges Reopening of Korematsu" (pp. 1, 10), "Speaking Out: Some Thoughts on Redress" (p. 2), and "Helping Young People to Relate to Evacuation on Personal Level" (p. 9).
Pacific Citizen, Vol. 94, No. 6 (February 12, 1982) (ddr-pc-54-6)
doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 94, No. 6 (February 12, 1982) (ddr-pc-54-6)
Selected article titles: "Immigration Raids Alarm Little Tokyo" (pp. 1, 12), "FDR 'Tapes' Tell More Than a Few Racial Slurs" (pp. 1, 7), "60th Anniversary Installation: Why the JACL Endures" (p. 7), and "The Major Supreme Court Error of WW2: Evacuation Cases" (p. 9).
Pacific Citizen, Vol. 123, No. 4 (August 16-September 5, 1996) (ddr-pc-68-16)
doc Pacific Citizen, Vol. 123, No. 4 (August 16-September 5, 1996) (ddr-pc-68-16)
Selected article titles: "JACL National Convention, San Jose, Aug. 6-11, 1996: All Aboard" (p. 1), "English-Only Bill Passes House" (pp. 1-2), "Severity of Anti-Asian Violence Is Increasing, Report Says" (p. 4), and "Michigan to Recall Murphy Dissent Against Internment" (pp. 6, 9).
Amicus brief filed in the Korematsu case (ddr-densho-35-428)
doc Amicus brief filed in the Korematsu case (ddr-densho-35-428)
Amicus Curiae brief filed on behalf of the states of California, Oregon and Washington in the Supreme Court case Korematsu v. United States of America.
Peter Irons Interview Segment 2 (ddr-densho-1012-16-2)
vh Peter Irons Interview Segment 2 (ddr-densho-1012-16-2)
Fred Korematsu's plastic surgery and motivations for resisting the incarceration (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or …

Peter Irons Interview Segment 7 (ddr-densho-1012-16-7)
vh Peter Irons Interview Segment 7 (ddr-densho-1012-16-7)
Fred Korematsu's arrest for resisting the curfew (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in …

Peter Irons Interview Segment 11 (ddr-densho-1012-16-11)
vh Peter Irons Interview Segment 11 (ddr-densho-1012-16-11)
Uncovering proof of suppression of evidence in the Korematsu case (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or …

Peter Irons Interview Segment 15 (ddr-densho-1012-16-15)
vh Peter Irons Interview Segment 15 (ddr-densho-1012-16-15)
Initial reactions to the judge's ruling in the Korematsu case (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or …

Fred Korematsu Interview Segment 11 (ddr-densho-1012-1-11)
vh Fred Korematsu Interview Segment 11 (ddr-densho-1012-1-11)
Looking back on wartime decisions (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material …

Fred Korematsu Interview Segment 6 (ddr-densho-1012-1-6)
vh Fred Korematsu Interview Segment 6 (ddr-densho-1012-1-6)
Being sent to an assembly center after hearing (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or recommendations expressed …

Fred Korematsu Interview Segment 2 (ddr-densho-1012-1-2)
vh Fred Korematsu Interview Segment 2 (ddr-densho-1012-1-2)
Hearing about Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in …

Fred Korematsu - Kathryn Korematsu Interview Segment 1 (ddr-densho-1012-8-1)
vh Fred Korematsu - Kathryn Korematsu Interview Segment 1 (ddr-densho-1012-8-1)
Fred Korematsu's decision to bring the coram nobis case (audio only)

This interview is audio-only. It contains raw footage used by Steven Okazaki in his 1985 film Unfinished Business.

This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, finding, and conclusions or recommendations …

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