[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 66 (Thursday, May 10, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E765]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING MR. GORDON HIRABAYASHI, RECIPIENT OF THE PRESIDENTIAL MEDAL OF 
                                FREEDOM

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JIM McDERMOTT

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 10, 2012

  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the late Mr. 
Gordon Kiyoshi Hirabayashi and to celebrate his Presidential Medal of 
Freedom, the Nation's highest civilian honor. As a student at the 
University of Washington during the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Mr. 
Hirabayashi resisted the internment of Japanese Americans by refusing 
to board a bus to an internment camp and by questioning the 
constitutionality of an imposed curfew.
  Mr. Hirabayashi challenged Executive Order 9066, which authorized the 
Japanese American internment during World War II. Along with Mr. 
Hirabayashi, Fred Korematsu and Minoru Yasui brought lawsuits before 
the Supreme Court. Though Mr. Hirabayashi lost his first case in 1943, 
he would go on to win in 1987 as the evidence proved there was no 
military reason for the exclusion order.
  As Mr. Hirabayashi noted ``there was a time when I felt that the 
Constitution failed me, but with the reversal in the courts and in 
public statements from the government, I feel that our country has 
proven that the Constitution is worth upholding. The U.S. government 
admitted it made a mistake. A country that can do that is a strong 
country. I have more faith and allegiance to the Constitution than I 
ever had before.''
  As the representative of Seattle, I am proud this high honor will be 
presented, albeit posthumously, to Mr. Hirabayashi. He had the bravery 
and strength to stand up for civil rights during a time when racism was 
widespread against Japanese and people of Japanese descent. I join many 
in honoring Mr. Hirabayashi for his courage.

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