James L. Farmer Jr. (1920 - 1999) was an American civil rights leader and cofounder of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE). He played a key role in advancing nonviolent protest in the fight against racial segregation and was one of the chief organizers of the 1961 Freedom Rides, which challenged segregation in interstate transportation. Farmer later served as an assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare and remained an influential advocate for civil rights and social justice.