The Penalty for Success
Josephine Bolling McCall
On December 4, 1947, white men shot Elmore Bolling to death in Lowndes County, Alabama, because he was a successful farmer and businessman, and Black. At the time of the murder, the 39-year-old married father of seven owned a farm and several other enterprises. But in the segregated Jim Crow South, Blacks who achieved business success could become the targets of whites determined to maintain racial supremacy. His “lynching” is the subject of the 2015 book The Penalty for Success, written by his daughter Josephine Bolling McCall. Through interviews with relatives and Lowndes County residents and historical research, McCall traces her family tree, recounts her father’s brutal murder, and describes the efforts made by her family to obtain justice and keep his memory alive. (Self published)