I read up on most of the information concerning this subject, and I still need help.
Japanese Internment
When President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, he authorized the evacuation of Japanese-Americans from the West Coast.
Why was this done???
Was it constitutional???
Why? Read read the sections titled "Historical Context" and "After Pearl Harbor" in this article.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_American_internment
In 1944, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the internment was Constitutional. I doubt if a modern court would make the same decision.
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To understand why Japanese-Americans were interned during World War II and whether it was constitutional, let's break down the question and explore it step by step.
1. Why was this done?
President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066 in response to the attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese Empire on December 7, 1941. The order authorized the evacuation and internment of Japanese-Americans from the West Coast of the United States. The primary reasons behind this decision were fear, racism, and national security concerns. The government believed that individuals of Japanese descent might pose a threat to national security, despite the fact that the vast majority of Japanese-Americans were loyal citizens.
2. Was it constitutional?
The constitutionality of Japanese internment during World War II remains a subject of debate, as it involved significant violations of civil liberties. In 1944, the Supreme Court case Korematsu v. United States addressed the constitutionality of Japanese internment. The court ruled in a 6-3 decision that the internment was justified due to wartime necessity, but it did not address the issue of racial discrimination explicitly.
It is important to note that the internment was widely criticized and is now recognized as a grave injustice. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan signed the Civil Liberties Act, formally apologizing for the internment and providing reparations to surviving victims.
In conclusion, the decision to intern Japanese-Americans during World War II was prompted by fear, racism, and national security concerns. While the Supreme Court ruled in favor of its constitutionality at the time, it is now widely regarded as a violation of civil liberties and an injustice.