Ida B. Wells was an African American journalist, abolitionist and feminist who led an anti-lynching crusade in the United States in the 1890s. She went on to found and become integral in groups striving for African American justice, and co-founded the National Association of Colored Women (NACW) in 1896. Wells wrote about issues of race and politics in the South. A number of her articles were published in black newspapers and periodicals under the moniker "Iola." Wells eventually became an owner of the Memphis Free Speech and Headlight, and, later, of the Free Speech.