; and (C) the exclusion, removal, and detention of United States citizens and resident aliens of Japanese ancestry were motivated largely by racial prejudice, wartime hysteria, and a failure of political leadership . (20) The overturning of the conviction of Fred Korematsu and the findings of the Commission on Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians influenced the decision by Congress to pass the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 ( 50 U.S.C. 4211 et seq. ) to request a Presidential apology and the symbolic payment of compensation to people of Japanese ancestry who lost liberty or property due to discriminatory actions of the Federal Government. (21) On August 10, 1988, President Reagan signed the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 ( 50 U.S.C. 4211 et seq. ), stating, [H]ere we admit a wrong; here we reaffirm our commitment as a nation to equal justice under the law. . (22) On January 15, 1998, President Clinton awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award of the United States, to Fred Korematsu, stating, [i]n the long history of our country’s constant search for justice, some names of ordinary citizens stand for millions of souls: Plessy, Brown, Parks. To that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu. . (23) Fred Korematsu remained a tireless advocate for civil liberties and justice throughout his life by— (A) speaking out against racial discrimination and violence