Jim Sensenbrenner: “Mr. Speaker, today I rise in favor of House Resolution 56. On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive…”

“Mr. Speaker, today I rise in favor of House Resolution 56. On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066. Shortly afterwards, citizens of Japanese ancestry residing in the United States were prohibited from living, working or traveling on the West Coast of the United States. Executive Order 9066 ultimately led to the detention of 120,000 Japanese Americans and residents, most of whom did not see freedom until the closing days of World War II. Executive Order 9066 also resulted in restrictions upon the civil liberties of Italian and German Americans residing in the United States, including government-imposed curfews, detentions, prohibitions on items considered to be contraband by military authorities, and seizures of personal property. President Ford formally rescinded Executive Order 9066 in 1976.”