James Leonard Farmer, Jr.'s Page

My General Profile and Major Accomplishments

• I was a civil rights activist.
• I cofounded, was the first national director, and one of the first leaders of the Committee of Racial Equality, which was later known as the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE).
• I am often credited with organizing one of the first successful sit ins of the Civil Rights movement at a local Chicago coffee shop, Jack Spratt.
• I initiated and organized the 1961 Freedom Ride. Eventually, this led to the desegregation of interstate transportation within the United States
• For a bit, I was the Assistant Secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare under the Nixon administration. 
• I cofounded Fund for an Open Society alongside Morris Miligram.

Early Life

• Although I was born in Marshall, TX, I was raised in Mississippi.
• I was the grandson of a slave.
• My father had earned a doctorate in theology from Boston University and was the first black Ph.D. in Texas. 
• My mother had a teaching certificate from Bethune-Cookman Institute.
• I was considered to be a "prodigy", and so I skipped a few grades in elementary school.

Education

Wiley College

• At the age of 14, being considered a "child prodigy", I enrolled in Wiley College in Marshall, Texas. 

• I graduated from here in 1938.

• I earned a Bachelor of Science degree.

Howard University's School of Religion

• I went on to Howard University's School of Religion and graduated in 1941.

• I earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree.
  

Profession

         Here you can learn a little bit about my Civil Rights career and the career that continued a bit after.

Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR)

• With the help of my theology professor, Thurman, I was able to get a part-tome job at the Fellowship of Reconcilation (FOR). I realized I did not want to become an ordained Methodist minister. I told my father that I would rather fight the church’s policy of segregated congregations. So, I continued my work at FOR as Secretary of Race Relations. With my extra time, I was able to put forth my own ideas influenced by FOR. With a group of interracial Chicago students, we founded the Committee of Racial Equality, which was later known as the Congress of Racial Equality.

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

• One of the first sit ins organized was at a local diner in Chicago that refused to serve colored people; Jack Spratt. Twenty-eight of us students entered the diner and sat in groups that had at least one black person in each group. The white people refused to eat until the colored were served, or would pass their plate to the nearest colored person. After CORE had declined several offers and even after the Police came, the manager had no other option but to serve us. We later found out that because of this, the diner chose to change their policy.

Freedom Rides

• A plan where segregation on interstate buses were tested by a mixed race and gender group. This group went through intensive training in Washington D.C.. The journey began on May 4, 1961 and took us through Virginia, the Carolinas, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, finishing on May 17 in New Orleans. The ride down Georgia went well. The states were aware of the trip and decided to either take down the “White Only” and “Colored” signs or they would ignore the segregation laws. Unfortunately, before we could make it to Alabama, I had gotten news of my father’s death and returned home. Alabama was the most dangerous part of the journey. One of the buses was torched. The other riders were beaten and abused so badly and rather than finishing the ride, they were forced to fly to New Orleans. To continue where they left off, Diane Nash and members of the SNCC sent students to replace the other participants. Later on in Montgomery, Alabama, I rejoined and got on the bus at the last minute. Us riders were greeted with severe violence, but we caught the attention of the media nationwide. In Louisiana, I and all of the other riders were immediately put in jail. I had been arrested for disturbing the peace by attempting to orangize protests. While in jail, I missed Martin Luther King’s March on Washington. These events encouraged other common citizens and Civil Rights leaders to take similar rides. They also inspired the Freedom Writers Foundation. All across the nation, CORE was recognized and I became a well known Civil Rights Leader.

In 1966, I resigned from my position as the National Director of CORE. I believed that CORE was losing sight of it’s Ghandi-style pacifism.

I decided to teach at Lincoln University and continued to lecture.

In 1968, I ran for U.S. Congress but was unsuccessful and lost to Shirley Chisholm.

In 1969, I became the Assistant Secretary of the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare under the Nixon administration. A bit later, I became frustrated with the administration and resigned from my position.

I retired from politics in 1971, though I continued to lecture and serve on different committees.

After accepting a position with the Coalition of American Public Employees (CAPE), I remained there for five years when my health began to go downhill. I was struggling with diabetes. It had taken my sight and I lost both legs to it.

In 1973, I became one of many to sign the Humanist Manifest II.

I cofounded Fund for an Open Society with Morris Milgram in 1975 and led it until 1999.

In 1985, I was also able to publish my own autobiography, Lay Bare the Heart.

At Mary Washington College, I was able to teach there from 1984 through 1998.

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

On July 9, 1999, due to complications, I lost the battle with diabetes and died.

Organizations and Memberships

Fellowship of Reconciliation (FOR)

• Member during the beginning of his career

Congress of Racial Equality (CORE)

• National Chairman at CORE 1942-1944 and again in 1950
• National Director at CORE in 1961-1966
• While not leading CORE, I remained interested in the organization's work.

I worked as a labor union organizer during 1945-1959.

Student League for Industrial Democracy (SLID) 

• Served as the national secretary of the SLID, which later became known as Students for a Democratic Society. This was a branch of the League for Industrial Democracy.

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

• Program director for NAACP from 1960-1961.

Democratic Socialists of America

• Served as an honorary vice chairman in the Democratic Socialists of America. 

A Signature Quote

"The fight for freedom is combined with the fight for equality, and we must realize that this is the fight for America—not just black America but all America."

My Goal, In One Sentence...

Let us work together to bring an end to racial segregation through nonviolence so that we can all see that we are equal!

Other Pertinent Information

• The first experience I had with segregation was when I was about 3 or 4. It was hot out and while I was out with my mother, I wanted a Coca-Cola. My mother had said no, that we had plenty in the icebox at home. I insisted and told her I wanted it now, I even had a nickel that my father had gave me the day before. I saw a young boy go inside the store and buy a Coca-Cola. I even showed my mother. Still not understanding what was going on, I continued to beg for it. My mother had to inform me that the reason the other boy could buy the Coca-Cola and not me was because he was white, and I was colored. This was a defining moment in my life.

• I was captain of the debate team at Wiley College.

• Mentors:

• A. Philip Randolph

• Melvin B. Tolson (English professor at Wiley College)

• Howard Thurman (Theology professor at Howard University)
  

• Ghandi

• I am portrayed in a 2007 film, The Great Debaters, by Denzel Whitaker.
• When I was 21, I was invited to the White House to talk with President Roosevelt.

• My first marriage was to Winnie. We ended up divorcing due to a note she found from another woman and the stress of a miscarriage. I married Lula, the woman who wrote the note, a few years later. When Lula was diagnosed with Hodgkins disease, we were advised not to have any children. Many years later, we looked for a second opinion. After this we were told it was okay to have children. Unfortunately, our first child ended up being a miscarriage. After this, we finally had a girl. Her name was Tami Lynn Farmer and she was born on February 14, 1959. A few years later, we had another girl; Abbey.

• I was the last of the "Big Four" to be alive. This was a group of major Civil Rights leaders consisting of Martin Luther King, Jr., Roy Wilkins, Whitney Young, and myself.

Honorary Doctorates and Awards

I have earned numerous honorary doctorates and awards, some of which include:

• Omega Psi Phi Award-1961 and 1963
• American Humanist Award-1976
• The Lifetime Achievement Award from the New York American Civil Liberties Union-1998 
• Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Bill Clinton-1998

Sources

• http://library.uncg.edu/dp/crg/personBio.aspx?c=41

• http://www.answers.com/topic/farmer-james-leonard

• http://jamesfarmerlectures.umwblogs.org/lecture-7/

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_L._Farmer,_Jr.
• http://jamesfarmer.umwblogs.org/
• http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/ffa19
• http://www.nytimes.com/1999/07/10/us/james-farmer-civil-rights-giant-in-the-50-s-and-60-s-is-dead-at-79.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm

• Hardy, Sheila, and P. Stephen Hardy. Extraordinary People of the Civil Rights Movement. Canada: Children, 2007. 79-83. Print.

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