Loss of Rights-Executive Order 9066
Japanese Americans under Executive Order #9066 were denied the right to a trial. The United States government believed it held a responsibility to send them to prison in order to protect the American war effort.
Joe Yasutake wrote to me that "We felt betrayed because it was hard to imagine why our own government would imprison us, who were citizens or long term residents (parents)." (Letter to Author 6 February, 2014)
Korematsu
Fred Korematsu, an American citizen with Japanese ancestry refused to leave his home. When arrested, he brought his case to the Supreme Court in 1944.
In the Korematsu case, "The Court sided with the government and held that the need to protect against espionage outweighed Korematsu's rights. Justice Black argued that compulsory exclusion, though constitutionally suspect, is justified during circumstances of 'emergency and peril' " (Oyez.com)
In the Korematsu case, "The Court sided with the government and held that the need to protect against espionage outweighed Korematsu's rights. Justice Black argued that compulsory exclusion, though constitutionally suspect, is justified during circumstances of 'emergency and peril' " (Oyez.com)
"I could still persevere in spite of my rights being taken from me as a citizen of this country" Dr. Tak Sugimoto in letter to author, Dec. 19, 2013