Claire Conner’s award-winning memoir, Wrapped in the Flag (Beacon Press 2013, 2014) weaves her intimate personal stories with the history of the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. She chronicles her parents’ obsession with radical right-wing politics embodied in the John Birch Society, the most powerful anti-Communist, anti-government, populist movement of the 20th century
Claire’s father, Stillwell J. (Jay) Conner, was the first and most visible member of the Birch society in Chicago. He served on the National Council of the organization for 32 years with men like Fred C. Koch (father of today’s infamous Koch brothers) and a host of other wealthy, powerful and radical men. After the Birch society labeled President Dwight Eisenhower a dedicated Communist, Claire’s father garnered significant media attention. The scandal that ensued made “Bircher” a term of derision. As a child of “Birchers,” Claire was shunned in school and isolated from friends and neighbors.
Claire gradually evolved from a compliant 13-year-old Birch member to an outspoken liberal; a change that provoked harsh attacks from her parents. Several years ago, Claire recognized the lurch to the far right in the Republican Party for what it is: the John Birch Society reborn with political muscle, huge money and media support.
With its compelling, easy-to-read stories, Wrapped in the Flag moves seamlessly between memoir and history, humor and pain, past and present serving up keen insight into the impact of extremism on one woman, her family and, if unchecked, on the entire country.
Wrapped in the Flag was named one of the Best In Nonfiction (2013) by Kirkus Reviews and a Best in Nonfiction (2013) by the Tampa Bay Times. 155 Amazon reviewers have awarded Wrapped in the Flag 5 stars. Claire is active on Facebook and Twitter with over 15,000 people who follow her.
Raves
Historians, political pundits, award-winning authors, and reviewers love Wrapped in the Flag. Readers rave about the book declaring it “hard to put down.” Here’s a small sample of the praise for Claire’s book.
Political Commentators and Authors
“The John Birch Society had a huge impact on American politics. This book is about a journey through and out of that Bircher netherworld. It’s a vital piece of the puzzle to understanding the madness that overcame America and a moving story about one person’s journey back to sanity.” Frank Schaeffer, award-winning author of Crazy For God
“I’ve been waiting for a book like this: one that demonstrates the shockingly effectual continuity of the John Birch Society as a force in American political life: from its early days discrediting the Cold War credentials of JFK . . . to its sudden eruption into mainstream Republican thinking with the rise of the Tea Party movement.” Rick Perlstein, award-winning author of Into the Storm, Nixonland, and The Invisible Bridge
“Wrapped in the Flag . . . is required reading for anyone who wants to understand the sources of the conspiratorial, hate-filled tropes of the right today—whether they emanate from the Tea Party, the gun movement, race realists, Sovereign Citizens, or, increasingly, from elected officials in the GOP.” Arthur Goldwag, Author of The New Hate: Fear and Loathing on the Populist Right
“ . . . Claire Conner has performed a great service by reminding us of the origins of some of most virulent ideas that continue to pollute our body politic. As the skeptical daughter of two passionate Birchers, Conner may be the only person who could have written such a clear-eyed, insider’s account of the persistent dangers of right-wing extremism.” Charles Kaiser, award-winning author of 1968 In America, The Gay Metropolis, and The Cost of Courage
“If there is such a thing as “Conservative Royalty” in the US, Claire is surely a princess. Her story of growing up in Chicago surrounded by John Birch Society members as well as the founders of the modern conservative movement is amazing for its ability to reveal what is at the heart of the conservative dream to re-shape the American political system. Claire Conner’s memoir is at the same time honest and frightening and should be read by anyone who is interested in knowing more about the roots of the Tea party, Libertarianism and the forces now in the driver’s seat of the GOP.” Rob Lorei, News/Public Affairs Director WMNF 88.5 FM, Tampa FL
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Kirkus Reviews
Kirkus Reviews May 1, 2013 "Prompted by the rise of the modern-day tea party, Conner writes of her experiences as the child of leaders in the radical right-wing John Birch Society. “My parents are back.” That was the author’s response to the rise of the tea party after the election of Barack Obama in 2008. In this memoir/history, she opens new insights into the conservative political movement, … Read more...
Library Journal
April 13, 2013 I know what extremism looks like," declares Conner in the preface to her memoir. Her parents were leaders of the ultraconservative John Birch Society (JBS). From early adolescence, she was expected to be part of her parents' JBS activities, doing everything from serving refreshments at recruitment meetings to writing letters to political figures. As Conner grew up, however, the … Read more...
Publishers Weekly
April 14, 2013 Conner’s memoir of being raised in a family whose political beliefs were shaped by the radical right-wing John Birch Society is an affecting portrait of late-20th-century America on the fringe. The eldest daughter of Stillwell “Jay” Conner, a national spokesman for the John Birch Society, Claire grew up in Chicago in a house of harsh discipline and even harsher political … Read more...
Tampa Bay Times
Review: Growing up on the right wing Colette Bancroft, Times Book Editor After Barry Goldwater's crushing defeat in the 1964 presidential election, college student Claire Conner said to a friend who proclaimed it would be "a cold day in hell" before another conservative was nominated, "'The whole right wing is kaput. My parents and the Birchers just became ancient history.' "Good … Read more...
Women’s Review of Books
Growing Up Right Wrapped in the Flag: A Personal History of America’s Radical Right By Claire Conner Boston: Beacon Press, 2013, 264 pp., $29.95, hardcover Reviewed by Kathleen Blee In Wrapped in the Flag, Claire Conner recounts the pain of growing up in a household in which “all reason went out the window,” as her parents slid further into the John Birch Society (JBS). … Read more...
Wrapped in Extremism, A Childhood in the John Birch Society by John Sheirer
Review of Wrapped in the Flag written for the Hampshire Daily Gazette by John Sheirer, author and political blogger August 10, 2013 Where did these people come from? Back in 2009, a friend saw a tea party rally on Fox News and asked me, “Where did these crazy people come from, the John Birch Society?” She was joking, but like all the best jokes, this one was grounded in reality. Wrapped in … Read more...
I Know What Extremism Looks Like
What separates Wrapped In The Flag from other critiques of the far right is my personal connection to the John Birch Society, which paved the way for the Tea Party. In my book, I open up about growing up in an ultra-conservative household and the beliefs that drive the radical right. This excerpt is reprinted here with the permission of Beacon Press. I Know What Extremism … Read more...
John Kennedy Smiled
. . . Five Minutes Later, He Was Dead From my book, Wrapped in the Flag, © 2013. With permission from Beacon Press. Texas Nice At 11 a.m. on Friday, November 22, 1963, I stood in the crowd on Main Street. The early morning rain had stopped and it was nearly seventy degrees. For a Chicago girl used to bundling up in November, that morning in Dallas was glorious. I stripped off my light jacket … Read more...
Civil Rights & the Radical Right
My parents had gotten their views about African Americans and the civil rights movement from Robert Welch, an old Southern boy [and co-founder of the John Birch Society]. He’d always thought the Negroes had it good in the United States, a view he explained in a pamphlet published in the early 1960s, Two Revolutions at Once. In it, Welch claimed that “educational opportunities [for Negroes] have … Read more...
Yikes! Textbooks Turn Children into Socialists
My parents had barely unpacked from their trip to Spain when they announced a new rule To my surprise, my parents had barely unpacked when they announced a new house rule: my brother and I were instructed to bring our schoolbooks home every day. “We want to know what you’re being taught,” Mother explained. “What do I tell Sister?” I asked. “We are only allowed to take workbooks out of the … Read more . . .
Meet the Koch Brothers, Billionaire Brothers Buying America
Let me introduce you to the Koch Brothers and their father, Fred, infamous John Birch Society founding member. This video is an outtake from my interview with Jen Senko, documentary filmmaker. Her new film, "The Brainwashing of My Dad" premieres on March 18, 2016. It is impossible to understand where the radical right got its mojo without knowing the Kochs. David and Charles are the architects of … Read more...
Old Radicals = New Radicals
I've spent a lot of time connecting the dots between old right-wing radicals, particularly John Birch Society radicals and today's new radicals in the Republican party. At first, I felt like I was the only one who realized that the GOP absorbed so much Birch thought that they had become nearly identical twins. The GOP doesn't like the comparison. The older establishment Republican types remember … Read more...
Meet the Koch Brothers, Billionaire Brothers Buying America
Let me introduce you to the Koch Brothers and their father, Fred, infamous John Birch Society founding member. This video is an outtake from my interview with Jen Senko, documentary filmmaker. Her new film, "The Brainwashing of My Dad" premieres on March 18, 2016. It is impossible to understand where the radical right got its mojo without knowing the Kochs. David and Charles are the architects of … More...
Southern Poverty Law Center, Spring 2013
Intelligence Report, Spring 2013, Issue Number: 149 Bringing Back Birch by Don Terry SACRAMENTO, Calif. — In a hotel near the outer limits of California’s capital, just down the hall from the pain management conference and the baseball card show, three banquet tables along the back wall of the Cherrywood Room are covered with dozens of … Read more...
Growing Up in the John Birch Society
Growing Up in the John Birch Society A new memoir exposes the trauma of growing up in an extreme-right-wing family—and the way those traumas were visited, politically, on the rest of us. By Rick Perlstein August 6, 2013 Old Enough to Save the Country Claire Conner was about 13 years old when her parents handed her a John Birch Society membership … Read more...
The John Birch Society’s Anti-Civil Rights Campaign of the 1960s
. . . and Its Relevance Today By Rachel Tabachnick, on January 21, 2014 Rachel Tabachnick is a PRA research fellow and member of the Public Eye editorial board. She researches the impact of the Religious Right on policy and politics in education, economics, the environment, and foreign policy. The John Birch Society, Libertarians, and Nullification Founded in 1958, the John Birch … Read more...
The New John Birch Society
by Robyn E. Blumner, Columnist/Editorial Writer If you've ever wondered what happened to the John Birch Society, author Claire Conner of Dunedin can tell you. The radical right-wing group that was briefly a player in national conservative politics in the 1960s is back, under a different name: tea party. She should know. Conner's new memoir Wrapped in the Flag: A … Read more...
Radicals Love Dictators
Make no mistake. Donald Trump would like to be America's dictator. Based on primary election results, a majority of the Republican party is okay with it. As of today, the GOP establishment, Evangelical Christians, Tea Party types, anti-government groups, and rank-and-file Republicans are falling in line with Trump. If you ever thought the GOP was conservative, it's time to stop. The GOP in 2016 … Read more ...
