James L. Farmer, Jr. Historical Marker
historical marker
This historical marker in Austin, Travis County, commemorates James L. Farmer, Jr., a prominent civil rights leader. Born on January 12, 1920, he died on July 9, 1999. Farmer spent his childhood in Austin from 1925 to 1930. His father, James L. Farmer, Sr., was a professor at Samuel Huston College, now Huston-Tillotson University, located in East Austin. In 1942, James L. Farmer, Jr. co-founded the Congress of Racial Equality, known as CORE. CORE pioneered the use of nonviolent direct action, inspired by Gandhian principles, to fight racial discrimination. Under Farmer's leadership, CORE organized the 1961 Freedom Rides, which challenged segregation in interstate transportation across the Deep South. For his work, Farmer received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1998. The Texas Historical Commission erected this marker in 2008, recognizing his enduring contributions to the civil rights movement.