Congressional Record

              Congressional taord
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^America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE JUU     CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION
Vol 133
WASHINGTON, FRIDAY, APRIL 10, 1987
No. 60
Senate
S5164
Mr. CRANSTON. Mr. President, I
«m delighted to oosponsor the legislation, 8. 1009. Introduced today by my
•very good friend from Hawaii [Mr.
Maxstjhaca] for redress of one of our
Government's greatest acts of Injustice. This legislation would Implement
the recommendations of the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment It was Introduced In the
99th Congress as S. 1053, and as S.
2116 in the »8th Congress. I am delighted to note the Increasing number
of cosponsors of this historic legislation.
As we look back with regret on this
painful period of Injustice—45 years
ago—we must reaffirm our pledge that
this kind of injustice must never recur.
Enactment of this legislation will
help to prevent a recurrence.
And it will help us to look forward
with hope to a brighter future of full
participation by Asian-Americans In
the American dream.
My involvement !n opposing the relocation of Japanese-Americans dates
back to the very beginning.
I believe that our Government's
action In this case was a terrible af-
Govemment to prove Its own adherence to democracy and to the very
ideals for which we were then at war.
President Roosevelt himself proclaimed. "In vindication of the very
Meals for which we are fighting this
war it Is Important to us to mountain a
high standard of fair, considerate, and
equal treatment for the people of this
minority as for all other minorities."
But this standard was not upheld.
The mere presence ot Japanese
blood in loyal American citizens was
believed to be enough to warrant removal and exclusion from places they
otherwise bad a right to go.
The argument that they were removed for their own good because of
possible vigilante attacks, was not persuasive. Most, if not ail. Japanese-
Americans would rather have faced
the risk of being killed by Individuals
than deprived of their liberties by
their oan American Government And
given the choice to remain interned or
fight In the war, most enlisted and
served
One of my most poignant memories
is of an Intelligent and progressive-
minded mother who was still manag-
forced evacuatiopLwas a personal in-
•justice. Former Attorney General
Francis Biddle reiterated his belief
that the program was ill-advised, unnecessary, and unnecessarily cruel.
Justice William O. Douglas, one of the
Supreme Court majority In the Kore-
matsu decision holding the evacuation
constitutionally permissible, later said
"the case was ever on my conscience."
And Chief Justice Earl Warren, who
as California's attorney general had
urged evacuation, afterward said, "I
have since deeply regretted the removal order and my own testimony advocating It, because It was not In keeping
with our American concept of freedom
and the rights of citizens."
On February 17. 1942, Attorney
General Francis Biddle wrote to Secretary Stlmson opposing the proposed
exclusion order, stating that the War
Department and the FBI had found
no danger of Imminent attack or evidence of planned sabotage. Biddle especially objected to removal from
their homes of 60,000 American citizens who happened to be of Japanese
descent. He refused to let the Justice
Department participate in any way
with the exclusion nollev.
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