MATSUI STATEMENT ON MITSUYE ENDO RECEIVING PRESIDENTIAL CITIZENS MEDAL

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-07) issued the following statement on President Biden awarding Mitsuye Endo Tsutsumi with a posthumous Presidential Citizens Medal. 

“Mitsuye Endo Tsutsumi lived an exceptional life. Her commitment to seek justice validated the most American of ideas – that any of us, ordinary Americans, hold enormous power to have an extraordinary impact through our actions and our willingness to stand up for what is right. 

“Mitsuye was a Sacramento native, graduating from Sacramento High School and eventually finding her way to a clerical job with the State of California. When Executive Order 9066 was signed, she and her family were sent to the Tule Lake, California, and Topaz, Utah, detention camps. At a time when the most angry, fearful currents of our nation held enormous power, she stepped forward to put a face and a story to the unlawful internment of Japanese Americans. Her courage stood as a beacon against her community’s wrongful incarceration. When it seemed as though the American pledge and ideal of liberty and justice for all was subject to the whims of a powerful few, she refused to back down. Her victory in the Supreme Court was a catalyst to end that dark chapter of our history.

“Our nation’s path toward justice has not always been straight or easy. We have had to navigate vast challenges to make our country more equitable and more free. That’s why Mitsuye’s story should be told and retold. It’s a story of strength and resilience. It’s a story of justice and principle. I thank President Biden for uplifting her voice and giving her the recognition she deserves as an American hero.”

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