Bill Text: IL HB5142 | 2017-2018 | 100th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the State Commemorative Dates Act. Provides that January 30 of each year is designated as Fred T. Korematsu Day, to be observed throughout the State as a day in honor of the man and his courageous fight and efforts for civil liberties, and to encourage schools and institutes of higher learning in this State to incorporate the story of Fred Korematsu and his valiant stand for American values of justice into their curricula. Provides a preamble. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2019-01-08 - Session Sine Die [HB5142 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2017-HB5142-Introduced.html

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100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2017 and 2018 HB5142 Introduced , by Rep. Theresa Mah SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
5 ILCS 490/69 new
Amends the State Commemorative Dates Act. Provides that January 30 of each year is designated as Fred T. Korematsu Day, to be observed throughout the State as a day in honor of the man and his courageous fight and efforts for civil liberties, and to encourage schools and institutes of higher learning in this State to incorporate the story of Fred Korematsu and his valiant stand for American values of justice into their curricula. Provides a preamble. Effective immediately.
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A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning government.
WHEREAS, An assault on civil liberties was launched on
February 19, 1942 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed
Executive Order No. 9066, authorizing the internment of all
people of Japanese descent in the United States; under the
order, those of Japanese ancestry, many American citizens, were
subject to a curfew and ordered to submit to imprisonment and
placed in American internment camps without trial, access to
legal counsel, or notice of any criminal charges; and
WHEREAS, Fred T. Korematsu of Oakland, California,
valiantly refused to comply with these directives in an
admirable display of civil disobedience and continued to
proudly live his life as a free American citizen; Fred
Korematsu was subsequently arrested and tried for refusing to
comply with Civilian Exclusion Order No. 34, which was
authorized by Executive Order No. 9066, and sent to Topaz
internment camp in Utah; and
WHEREAS, Fred Korematsu, in a selfless act of sacrifices,
agreed to be the representative for those wrongfully
imprisoned, and appealed his case with the help of Earnest
Besig of the American Civil Liberties Union; the case was heard
by the United States Supreme Court; and
WHEREAS, The Supreme Court upheld the decision to imprison

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Fred Korematsu in a 6-3 ruling, as well as the
constitutionality of discrimination against a racial group as
justified under conditions of war; that decision remains a
scourge upon civil liberties and American values of equal
protection; the conviction of Fred Korematsu was overturned via
a writ of error corum nobis on November 10, 1983 by the United
States District Court of Northern California; the Supreme Court
decision has yet to be challenged; and
WHEREAS, Fred Korematsu and his legal team appealed to
overturn his conviction, inspiring the Civil Liberties Act of
1988, which was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan,
which formally apologized to those wrongfully incarcerated
under Executive Order No. 9066, and acknowledged the order was
issued because of "racial prejudice, wartime hysteria, and a
failure of political leadership"; Fred Korematsu was later
awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Bill
Clinton, the highest honor awarded to a civilian who has
admirably served the interests of the Nation; and
WHEREAS, Fred Korematsu continued throughout his life to
raise his voice for the voiceless and defend the defenseless in
solidarity with those denied civil liberties, including
speaking out against the solitary confinement of an American
Muslim man in a United States military prison without trial;
and

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WHEREAS, Fred Korematsu passed away on March 30, 2005;
today, the Fred Korematsu Institute works to educate people
about his life story and the importance of civil liberties; the
institute also aims to promote awareness by schools, the
general public, and state and federal legislators of Fred
Korematsu by observing his birthdate, January 30, as Fred T.
Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution;
therefore
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The State Commemorative Dates Act is amended by
adding Section 69 as follows:
(5 ILCS 490/69 new)
Sec. 69. Fred T. Korematsu Day. January 30 of each year is
designated as Fred T. Korematsu Day, to be observed throughout
the State as a day in honor of the man and his courageous fight
and efforts for civil liberties, and to encourage schools and
institutes of higher learning in this State to incorporate the
story of Fred Korematsu and his valiant stand for American
values of justice into their curricula.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon

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becoming law.