The Japanese have Disappeared by Hugh Taft-Morales
- Angela Coppola
- Feb 5, 2023
- 1 min read
Speaker: Hugh Taft-Morales
“The Japanese have disappeared.” That disembodied voice in Julie Otsuka’s novel The Buddha in the Attic was speaking about the 120,000 innocent citizens of Japanese descent consigned to internment camps during World War II. Considered among the worst-ever Supreme Court decisions, Korematsu v. United States stood 74 years, until it was overturned in Trump v. Hawaii. It was justice grievously delayed. Hugh urges us never to forget the words of the plaintiff, Fred Korematsu: “Fears and prejudices directed against minority communities are too easy to evoke and exaggerate, often to serve the political agendas of those who promote those fears.” Hugh Taft-Morales is Leader of the Philadelphia Ethical Society, a humanist community dedicated to honoring the worth and dignity of every human being, cultivating character, nurturing ethical relationships and caring networks, building community capacity, and social justice.
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