April 26, 2024

James Farmer Multicultural Center’s Efforts to Establish Historical Marker at Freedom Rides Site Highlighted in FLS

Dr. James L. Farmer Jr. Photo by Suzanne Carr Rossi.

Dr. James L. Farmer Jr. Photo by Suzanne Carr Rossi.

A recent article in The Free Lance-Star highlighted the James Farmer Multicultural Center’s work with City Councilman Chuck Frye to establish an official historical marker at the site of the former Fredericksburg bus station where the Freedom Riders stopped in 1961, in their quest to desegregate interstate travel, orchestrated by civil rights icon and late Mary Washington history professor James L. Farmer Jr.

“It’s a great milestone that the city has met and it’s a huge deal that we have taken time to settle down and tell the story of Fredericksburg,” Frye said. “To me, it shows how history books don’t tell the story of African–American history. And here in 2021 we’re researching information and coming up with actual history.” Read more.