Fred T. Korematsu Institute

Fred T. Korematsu Institute The Korematsu Institute educates to advance racial equity, social justice, and human rights for all. http://korematsuinstitute.org
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January 30, 2026, was the 15th anniversary of the first Fred Korematsu Day! We debuted a special program, a conversati...
05/13/2026

January 30, 2026, was the 15th anniversary of the first Fred Korematsu Day! We debuted a special program, a conversation with Dr. Karen Korematsu and MS NOW 's “Burn Order” podcast Co-Executive Producer and Co-Writer, Michael Yarvitz, on what would have been Fred Korematsu's 107th birthday. The special program features an insightful conversation about the podcast, the dangers of misinformation and disinformation, the power of education, and the work ahead. You can watch it here: https://korematsuinstitute.org/conversation-michael-yarvitz/

“We all must be vigilant to make sure that the Constitution is upheld. We must be particularly careful in times of natio...
05/12/2026

“We all must be vigilant to make sure that the Constitution is upheld. We must be particularly careful in times of national crisis. Sometimes there’s a temptation to take shortcuts, and we should not take shortcuts. We have to be vigilant to uphold the Constitution.”

Fordham’s Center on Asian Americans and the Law will revisit the Korematsu v. US Supreme Court case in a reenactment, followed by a conversation with Dr. Karen Korematsu, on May 18 in New York. The event is also sponsored by the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, and the Fred T. Korematsu Institute in recognition of AANHPI Heritage Month. Read more about the event here: https://tinyurl.com/5tn3r7x9
Learn more and register here: https://tinyurl.com/3b847ytb

“High school history class is an incredible opportunity. This is the last time where people in this country are forced t...
05/12/2026

“High school history class is an incredible opportunity. This is the last time where people in this country are forced to sit and think and write about the founding values.”

This year, the country celebrates its 250th birthday. In classrooms, teachers say current events are reshaping how students read the Declaration of Independence, discuss citizenship and equality, and understand our foundational documents today. Read more: https://tinyurl.com/2ucd7y9p

A gift to the Korematsu Institute is an investment in the future, so that the next generation does not forget the Japa...
05/11/2026

A gift to the Korematsu Institute is an investment in the future, so that the next generation does not forget the Japanese American Incarceration, the struggle for civil rights, or the heroes and contributions of the AANHPI community. As funding for education and advocacy nonprofits is threatened, and history is being erased or rewritten, join the Korematsu Institute to put the tools to educate against erasure, prejudice, and hate into educators' hands: https://www.giveinmay.org/organization/Korematsu-Institute

“It’s transformative for youth to see themselves and their families centered in curriculum instead of in a paragraph, se...
05/11/2026

“It’s transformative for youth to see themselves and their families centered in curriculum instead of in a paragraph, sentence, footnote or not at all. In centering Asian American and Pacific Islander experiences, the textbook opens possibilities for students to feel valued and learn more about the communities they belong to as well as communities they may not know much about.”

A new AAPI multimedia textbook, “Foundations and Futures,” covering more than 20 ethnic communities, is debuting after six years of production. The book contains videos, photos, audio clips, and high school and college lesson plans covering the role of AANHPI communities in United States history. According to a recent TAAF survey, "47% of those surveyed were unable to name a famous Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and 53% unable to name a single significant moment in U.S. history related to AAPIs." The hope is that all people can learn from this book, including the states that have statutes requiring AAPI history in the classroom. Read more here: https://tinyurl.com/2vdpps7k

Happy !
05/10/2026

Happy !

“Without the Chinese migrants, the Transcontinental Railroad would not have been possible.” in 1869, the Central Pacifi...
05/10/2026

“Without the Chinese migrants, the Transcontinental Railroad would not have been possible.”

in 1869, the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroads were joined at Promontory Summit, Utah, completing the first transcontinental railroad in the United States, joining the east and the west coast. While originally rejected as laborers, the 15,000-20,000 Chinese workers were critical to the often dangerous work that led to the railroad's completion. Stanford University University’s Chinese Railroad Workers in North America Project has worked to examine the untold stories, lost history, and experience of these railroad workers. Learn more: https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2019/04/giving-voice-to-chinese-railroad-workers

“There are classical Japanese gardening techniques, the use of bridges, the use of ponds that are meaningful and signifi...
05/09/2026

“There are classical Japanese gardening techniques, the use of bridges, the use of ponds that are meaningful and significant. The administrators in the army and the U.S government viewed these things as the Japanese people buying in and making this place theirs and contributing American productivity. They would say, ‘They’re so patriotic. Look at these beautiful gardens they’re creating.’”

Incarceration camps were often located in isolated areas of the country with challenging or non-arable land, with terrain unsuitable for cultivating crops. Gardening became a tool of sustenance and resistance. The team at the University of Colorado, Denver, presented their research in "Gaimenteki Doka: Gardening as Resistance in Japanese Internment Camps" at the 2026 Society of Architectural Historians conference. Read more here: https://news.ucdenver.edu/gardening-as-resistance-in-japanese-internment-camps/

“This is a really historic moment for San Jose in welcoming this expanded narrative of Japanese Americans. Generations o...
05/09/2026

“This is a really historic moment for San Jose in welcoming this expanded narrative of Japanese Americans. Generations of kids will be able to see their story reflected in this space.”

Eight miles can make a big difference. The 11-acre farmstead and orchards of Eiichi Sakauye (1912-2005), a second-generation Japanese-American farmer and horticulturalist who was incarcerated during WWII, were in danger of being lost. The developer, the city of San Jose, and preservation activists negotiated to preserve the home of the Heart Mountain incarceree. They were able to move the Sakauye farmhouse and save this important history. Read more at AsAmNews here: https://asamnews.com/2026/05/06/sakauye-farmhouse-relocated-to-san-jose-history-park/

“My father’s story is not a West Coast story or a Japanese American story — this is an American story." - Dr. Karen Kore...
05/08/2026

“My father’s story is not a West Coast story or a Japanese American story — this is an American story." - Dr. Karen Korematsu

Learn more about Fred Korematsu! We have the 24-minute version of our documentary on , "Of Civil Wrongs & Rights: The Fred Korematsu Story," directed by Eric Paul Fournier, available on our website. One of our current projects is remastering our two-time Emmy-award-winning documentary in honor of its 25th anniversary, to make it available on mainstream platforms and to create a supporting curriculum for educators. To learn more about Fred Korematsu, the Constitution, and this pivotal moment in civil rights history, stream his story here: https://korematsuinstitute.org/of-civil-wrongs-and.../
If you would like to help us get this documentary updated to 4K and help educators teach this story, you can donate to KI for here: https://www.giveinmay.org/organization/Korematsu-Institute

Who is Fred Korematsu, and what does he have to do with the Supreme Court? In 2024, we honored the 80th anniversary of...
05/08/2026

Who is Fred Korematsu, and what does he have to do with the Supreme Court? In 2024, we honored the 80th anniversary of the Korematsu v. United States case decided on December 18, 1944. Often cited, the landmark decision by the Supreme Court upheld the incarceration of 125,000 Japanese Americans from the West Coast during WWII. Learn more about the Korematsu v. US case and hear Dr. Karen Korematsu and lawyer Peter Irons discuss its legal importance here: https://landmarkcases.c-span.org/Case/6/Korematsu-v.-United-States

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