Fred Korematsu Day
January 30, Thursday
During World War II, after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, the US government ordered all Japanese Americans to be internment in camps. Korematsu refused to follow the order and was arrested for violating the relocation order.
His case became a key civil rights case. Korematsu sued the US government, claiming that the relocation order was discriminatory. In 1944, his case reached the US Supreme Court, which unfortunately upheld his conviction.
It was not until decades later, in 1983, that his conviction was overturned, and Korematsu was recognized as a victim of injustice. In 1998, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, one of the highest honors in the United States, for his fight for civil rights and justice.
Fred Korematsu Day in other years
- 2021 January 30, Saturday
- 2022 January 30, Sunday
- 2023 January 30, Monday
- 2024 January 30, Tuesday
- 2026 January 30, Friday