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"My father was an American civil rights hero who moved to Detroit, Michigan, after being released from the incarceration camp in Utah. For the rest of his life, he represented his community and championed free speech, social justice, and racial equality, and encouraged us all to 'stand up for what is right.'” - Karen Korematsu

Fred Korematsu was born and raised in California, but Michigan has played a pivotal role in his story and legacy.

In December 1944, Fred Korematsu lost his landmark Supreme Court case, Korematsu v. United States. However, the decision was not unanimous. Justice Murphy of Michigan was one of the three dissenting voices, courageously stating that the exclusion of Japanese Americans from the West Coast “falls into the ugly abyss of racism.”

After being forced to live at the Topaz incarceration camp in Utah, Fred moved to Detroit, Michigan, to rebuild his life as an American citizen. It was here that he met Kathryn, a student at Wayne State University originally from South Carolina. At the time, anti-miscegenation laws prohibited interracial marriage in many states, including California and South Carolina, but Michigan allowed mixed-race marriages. Fred and Kathryn Korematsu married in Detroit before relocating to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1949, where they raised two children, Karen and Ken.

Nearly 40 years after losing in the Supreme Court, Fred Korematsu saw his conviction overturned in a federal court in San Francisco on November 10, 1983, marking a pivotal moment in civil rights history. In 1998, President Bill Clinton awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor in recognition of his bravery for standing up against the government's violation of the Constitution. In 2010, California passed the Fred Korematsu Day bill, making January 30 the first statewide day in U.S. history to be named after an Asian American.

Michigan proudly became the 7th state to designate January 30 as Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution when Governor Whitmer signed Michigan Bill SB 18 on May 17, 2023. This day honors Fred Korematsu’s legacy and recognizes his significant contributions to America’s civil rights movement.

We invite you to join us in honoring Fred Korematsu’s enduring legacy with a donation to the Fred T. Korematsu Institute. Your contribution will help us continue educating to protect civil liberties in Michigan and beyond. Together, we can ensure that Fred Korematsu’s story inspires future generations to stand up for racial equity, social justice, and human rights for everyone.