Ida Bell Wells-Barnett (July 16, 1862 – March 25, 1931), also known as Ida B. Wells, was an African-American journalist, suffragist and women's rights advocate. She was born a slave in Holly Springs, Mississippi during the American Civil War. Wells grew up to become a teacher in Memphis, Tennessee. She became co-owner of a local newspaper "The Free Speech and Headlight". She wrote editorials using the pen name "Iola". Many of her editorials were about the problems of African-Americans in the era of Jim Crow laws. She became a full-time journalist after being dismissed from her teaching job. Wells was an early pioneer in the civil rights movement. In 1909, Wells was one of the founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).