Bob Matsui
A Japanese-American congressman who channeled the trauma of internment into a lifelong fight for civil rights and reparations.
1941–2005 (age 64)·American politician·Birthday: September 17·The Silent Generation
Biography
Bob Matsui’s life was defined by a childhood injustice that forged his political conscience. Born in Sacramento, he was just six months old when his family was forced into an internment camp during World War II. That experience became the bedrock of his career. After earning a law degree, he entered local politics and won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1978. For over a quarter-century, he was a quiet but formidable force, specializing in tax policy while never abandoning the cause of the camp survivors. His most significant legislative triumph was his pivotal role in the passage of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, which formally apologized for the internment and provided reparations to those who had been imprisoned. Matsui’s work was a testament to turning personal history into a powerful engine for national atonement.
The Silent Generation
1928–1945
Born between the Depression and the end of WWII. Too young to fight, old enough to remember. They became the conformist middle managers of the 1950s — and the civil rights leaders who quietly dismantled Jim Crow.
Bob was born in 1941, placing them squarely in The Silent Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Bob Was Born
The biggest hits of 1941
#1 Movie
Sergeant York
Best Picture
How Green Was My Valley
Bob's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1941Born
Pearl Harbor attack brings the US into WWII
Gas: $0.19/galHome: $3,060Min wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Chattanooga Choo Choo" — Glenn MillerBest Picture: How Green Was My Valley
1946Started school
United Nations holds its first General Assembly
Gas: $0.21/galHome: $5,150Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Prisoner of Love" — Perry ComoBest Picture: The Best Years of Our Lives
1954Became a teenager
Brown v. Board of Education desegregates US schools
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $8,925Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Little Things Mean a Lot" — Kitty KallenBest Picture: On the Waterfront
1957Could drive
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1959Could vote
Fidel Castro takes power in Cuba
Gas: $0.30/galHome: $12,400Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"The Battle of New Orleans" — Johnny HortonBest Picture: Ben-Hur
1962Turned 21
Cuban Missile Crisis brings the world to the brink
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $12,800Min wage: $1.15/hrPresident: John F. Kennedy"Stranger on the Shore" — Acker BilkBest Picture: Lawrence of Arabia
1971Turned 30
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1981Turned 40
MTV launches; first Space Shuttle flight; AIDS identified
Gas: $1.31/galHome: $52,300Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Bette Davis Eyes" — Kim CarnesBest Picture: Chariots of Fire
1991Turned 50
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
2001Turned 60
September 11 attacks transform the world
Gas: $1.46/galHome: $126,400Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Hanging by a Moment" — LifehouseBest Picture: A Beautiful Mind
2005Died at 64
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
Key Achievements
- Served 13 consecutive terms as a U.S. Representative from California from 1979 until his death in 2005.
- Played a key role in passing the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, which granted reparations to Japanese-American internment camp survivors.
- Served on the powerful House Ways and Means Committee, shaping national tax and trade policy.
- Was the first Asian American to serve on the Democratic Party’s committee to draft the presidential platform in 1984.
Did You Know?
He was interned with his family at the Tule Lake War Relocation Center in California as an infant.
Matsui Hall at the University of California, Davis, is named in his honor.
He was a skilled baseball player in his youth and turned down a minor league contract to attend college.
“We must ensure that the injustices of the past are not repeated in the future.”
