Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday issued a proclamation declaring Jan. 30 as Fred Korematsu Day in California, in honor of the man who challenged the U.S. policy of interning Japanese-American citizens during World War II.

The proclamation hails the Oakland-born Fred Korematsu as a civil rights hero who made a bold decision at age 23 to challenge the policy of Japanese internment.

In 2010, then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the bill establishing Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution in perpetuity, the first statewide day named for an Asian American in U.S. history, according to the Fred Korematsu Institute.

The day is marked every Jan. 30, Korematsu’s birthday.

He died in March 2005 at age 86. This year marks the 102nd anniversary of his birth.

Korematsu, who worked as a welder, refused to abide by Executive Order 9066, the federal government’s demand that Japanese Americans report to incarceration camps.

Korematsu’s act of protest led to his arrest and conviction, which he fought all the way to the Supreme Court.

The highest court in the land would rule against him, arguing that the incarceration of Japanese Americans was justifiable based on military necessity.

Forty years later, a federal court overturned Korematsu’s criminal conviction.

In that ruling, Judge Marilyn Hall Patel said, “a grave injustice was done to American citizens and resident aliens of Japanese ancestry who, without individual review or any probative evidence against them, were excluded, removed and detained by the United States during World War II.”

“Over the course of his life, Korematsu fought for the civil liberties of others. He was tireless in his work to ensure Americans understood the lessons learned from one of the dark chapters of our history,” the governor’s proclamation said.

In 1998, President Bill Clinton awarded Korematsu the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

“The Supreme Court’s decision in Korematsu v. United States still hangs over this country after 77 years,” the governor’s proclamation stated. “Korematsu’s legacy reminds us that we must continue to strike out against injustice in our daily lives. Especially in a moment of increased Anti-Asian sentiment and xenophobia, each and every one of us must continue his fight for a more equal tomorrow.”

Learn more about Fred Korematsu here.