Born on January 12, 1920 in Marshall, Texas, Farmer grew up in a highly segregated and racist society. His father, James L. Farmer, Sr., was a minister and professor of theology at the historically Black institution, Wiley College. His mother, Pearl Houston, was a former educator who graduated from Bethune-Cookman Institute in Florida. ^[2]“Farmer, James,” The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, accessed March 28, 2022. https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/farmer-james. Farmer later attended Wiley College himself, and after graduating in 1938, he was accepted into Howard University’s School of Divinity. This is where he was first exposed to the nonviolent teachings of Gandhi, which heavily impacted his work in the Civil Rights Movement ^[3]Scott Shepard, “A Life on the Front Lines: Ending Racism Has Been an Epic Battle for James Farmer,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution, April 6, 1997.. In 1942, Farmer co-founded the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) which pioneered nonviolent tactics such as sit-ins and the Freedom Rides to fight racial inequality. Farmer and his fellow CORE members founded the 1961 Freedom Rides, where they rode interstate buses through the American South to protest segregation on public transport ^[4]“Congress of Racial Equality,” The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, accessed March 28, 2022. … Continue reading. Due to Farmer’s and his fellow freedom riders’ imprisonment in Louisiana, he missed the 1963 March on Washington, and the speech he was supposed to give was delivered by fellow CORE member Floyd McKissick. Farmer became the first national director of CORE in 1961 and served as director until 1966 ^[5]“Congress of Racial Equality,” The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, accessed March 28, 2022. … Continue reading. He then served in President Nixon’s Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, where he was tasked with increasing the role of people of color in the administration. For his involvement and work in the Civil Rights Movement, Farmer is considered to be one of the Big Six activists and leaders of the American Civil Rights Movement, along with Martin Luther King Jr. and John Lewis^[6]“Farmer, James,” The Martin Luther King, Jr. Research and Education Institute, accessed March 28, 2022. https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/farmer-james.. In 1980, Farmer moved from New York to Fredericksburg, Virginia and taught The History of the American Civil Rights Movement at Mary Washington College for almost a decade. In 1998, Farmer received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Clinton and retired from teaching. He passed away in 1999 in Fredericksburg. ^[7]“About James Farmer,” University of Mary Washington, accessed March 28, 2022, https://students.umw.edu/multicultural/aboutjamesfarmer/.