We at the Fred T. Korematsu Institute strive to uphold the legacy of Fred Korematsu, who resisted the WWII Japanese American incarceration and later fought for justice for other marginalized groups. He urged us all to “Stand up for what is right.”  

In his spirit, we share in the anger over the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and too many others. We demand justice and an end to the systemic and overt racism that elevates some lives over others. We know that Black Lives Matter and believe Asian Americans need to stand in solidarity now, as well as examine and work to end the biases and anti-Blackness in our communities. 

We also recognize this is a critical time with the uptake in xenophobia, racism, hateful rhetoric, and violence against members of the AAPI community. With almost 3,800 anti-Asian acts of hate speech, racism, and violence reported across the country, we believe now is the time to take decisive action towards a more positive future. At the Korematsu Institute, we believe words matter, we believe history matters and we believe in the power of education to bring about substantive change.  

With a mission of educating to advance racial equity, social justice, and human rights for all, we will continue to speak up for all communities, continue to improve and distribute our free Digital Curriculum Toolkits on the history of racism and xenophobia in the United States to educators and parents and stand up for what is right to preserve civil liberties for all.