Overview
After the Japanese Navy attacks Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States and Japan are at war. For over one hundred thousand Japanese Americans, the war brings special tragedy. One and all, they are rounded up by the United States Army and imprisoned in internment camps. Fred Korematsu challenges his arrest and the treatment of Japanese Americans during the war.Relates the life and experiences of the Japanese American who defied the order of internment during World War II and took his case as far as the Supreme Court.
Synopsis
After the Japanese Navy attacks Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the United States and Japan are at war. For over one hundred thousand Japanese Americans, the war brings special tragedy. One and all, they are rounded up by the United States Army and imprisoned in internment camps. Fred Korematsu challenges his arrest and the treatment of Japanese Americans during the war.
School Library Journal
Gr 3-6-- Toyosaburo ``Fred'' Korematsu was born in Oakland, California, in 1919. He volunteered for military service in 1941, but was rejected because of his Japanese ancestry. He lost welding jobs for the same reason. When Japanese Americans on the West Coast were evacuated from their homes and sent to internment camps in 1942, Korematsu refused to go. This clear and direct account traces his long, frustrating legal battle up to and including the defeat of his case before the Supreme Court. Then in 1982, evidence that had been suppressed surfaced, and he was finally able to prove that the government had denied him his freedom as an American citizen and won his case. This part of U. S. history is worthy of study so that it will not be repeated. Schools will want to use this accessible title in conjunction with civics units. --Susan Middleton, LaJolla Country Day School, CA