A civil rights leader, who protested U.S.-government treatment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, has been awarded America's highest civilian honor nearly 30 years after his death.
Minoru Yasui was one of 17 people who received this year's Presidential Medal of Freedom. On Tuesday, President Barack Obama presented the medal to Yasui's daughter, Laurie, at a White House ceremony.
(Barack Obama / U.S. President)
"He never stopped fighting for equality and justice for all. Today, Min's legacy has never been more important. It is a call to our national conscience."
During the Second World War, the U.S. government imposed harsh restrictions on about 120,000 citizens of Japanese descent. Yasui was imprisoned for protesting a curfew on Japanese-Americans. He was later sent to an internment camp.
After the war, he continued to challenge the constitutionality of the government's actions. He died in 1986. Two years later, the government officially admitted its actions were an abuse of human rights.
◆legacy 遺産
◆conscience 良心
◆harsh 厳しい、過酷な
◆descent 血統、家系
◆curfew 夜間外出禁止令
◆internment camp 強制収容所
◆constitutionality 合憲性、合法性
