Even if all of one’s antecedents had been convicted of treason, the Constitution forbids its penalties to be visited upon him. But here is an attempt to make an otherwise innocent act a crime merely because this prisoner is the son of parents as to whom he had no choice, and belongs to a race from which there is no way to resign. If Congress in peace-time legislation should enact such a criminal law, I should suppose this Court would refuse to enforce it.
Joseph Henry Jackson (1894-1955) American writer, editor
Korematsu v. United States, 323 U.S. 214, 242-45 (1944) [Dissenting]
On the internment of an American of Japanese descent.
Quotations by:
Jackson, Joseph Henry
Did you ever hear anyone say, “That book had better be banned because I might read it and it might be very damaging to me”?
Joseph Henry Jackson (1894-1955) American writer, editor
San Francisco Chronicle