Document C: The Korematsu Supreme Court Ruling We uphold the exclusion order as of the time it was made and when the petitioner (Mr. Korematsu) violated it.In doing so, we are (aware of the hardships imposed by the exclusion order] upon a large group of American citizens.But hardships are part of war... All citizens alike, both in and out of uniform, feel the impact of war in greater or lesser measure. Citizenship has its responsibilities, as well as its privileges, and, in time of war, the burden is always heavier. Compulsory (required) exclusion of large groups of citizens from their homes... is inconsistent with our basic governmental institutions. But when... our shores are threatened by hostile forces, the power to protect must be commensurate (equal) with the threatened danger... To (talk about this case (as) racial prejudice, without reference to the real military dangers which were presented, (only) confuses the issue. Korematsu was not excluded from the Military Area because of hostility to him or his race. He was excluded because we are at war with the Japanese Empire, because the military authorities feared an invasion of our West Coast and ... decided that the military urgency of the situation demanded that all citizens of Japanese ancestry be segregated from the West Coast temporarily, and finally, because Congress, (placing] its confidence in this time of war in our military leaders... determined that they should have the power to do just this.​