Bill > S338

This bill aims to award a posthumous Congressional Gold Medal to Fred Korematsu, a Japanese American civil rights activist who challenged the discriminatory internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. The bill provides extensive historical context about Korematsu's life, including his resistance to Executive Order 9066, which mandated the removal of Japanese Americans from the West Coast after the Pearl Harbor attack. Despite being a U.S. citizen, Korematsu was arrested, convicted, and detained in internment camps, and his case went to the Supreme Court, which initially upheld his conviction in a controversial 1944 decision. In 1983, his conviction was overturned when it was revealed that the government had suppressed evidence showing Japanese Americans were not a security threat. The bill recognizes Korematsu's lifelong advocacy for civil liberties and his role in highlighting racial discrimination. It directs the Secretary of the Treasury to strike a gold medal in his honor, with the medal to be displayed at the Smithsonian Institution, particularly at the National Portrait Gallery. The legislation also allows for the creation and sale of bronze duplicates of the medal, with proceeds going to the U.S. Mint Public Enterprise Fund. By honoring Korematsu, the bill seeks to commemorate his courage in standing up against injustice and to serve as a reminder of the importance of protecting constitutional rights during times of national crisis.

Housing and Urban Affairs

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/338/all-info