In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:00 PM

1. Donation – We received a donation of $200 from some dear friends of ours! We’re pretty solid on the general treasury fund, so we opted to put this money into our library fund so that we may fund the AK Press book purchase we so desperately want to make. We’ll table the actual purchasing of books until after the fall calendar is finalized.

2. Fall Calendar – We’re still working on potential Popcorn Politics films. There was a suggestion in the group chat for a horror movie for October – Alien was a favorite suggestion for that – and an anti-war film for the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. Jackson is suggesting Johnny Got His Gun for that. Though a different war, Full Metal Jacket would also be a good choice. Alien will likely be the film for October, but things are still brewing for November (Dr. Strangelove and Paths of Glory are also potential options), and no specific leads for September.
We really do need to have some solid discussions, and we really want to commemorate 1968 somehow but we’re not sure how at this point. Ty is fairly confident in his ability to do a discussion on disability rights.

Meeting adjourned: 8:30PM

Tabled items: Fall calendar, AK Press Purchase, Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop, more button parts)

In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:05 PM

1. Event Review – We did Popcorn Politics last Friday. It was a good film and a pretty good discussion followed.

2. Upcoming Event – We have a reading discussion this Saturday. Unfortunately, it’s been double-booked with a sudden event concerning the death penalty. We’ll have to still get the articles compiled and printed, and clean up the room.

3. Reimbursement – We bought some books at Socialism 2018, which totaled to $80.57. Jackson also had to pay for our secondary website domain name and the privacy associated with it, which totaled to $30.87.

4. Fall Calendar –

Black-Out Days: September 1, 8, 15, 29; October 20; November 10, 17
Grey-Out Days: September 14, November 24

Nov 19 – International Men’s Day
Nov 25 – International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
Nov 29 – International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People

Possible discussions: Disability rights, September discussion on Puerto Rico, farmers/agriculture, the politics of sports, 1968 year of revolt anniversaries

Possible Popcorn Politics: Free State of Jones, The Parallax View, The Young Karl Marx

Possible documentaries: Tough Guise, American Socialist: The Life & Times of Eugene Victor Debs

Meeting adjourned: 8:33 PM

Tabled items: Fall calendar, Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop, more button parts)

In Attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:00 PM

1. Event Review – Popcorn Politics was last Friday, which went well! A new visitor to the house noted that they came there through Outlinc’s calendar – we didn’t post it there, but we do need to do better about making sure we share our LGBTQ+ related events there.

2. Fall Calendar – The Young Karl Marx is a movie night we would like to feature at some point, but the DVD is still rather expensive. We would also like to see In The Intense Now, but it might not be on DVD yet. Perhaps there is another film about 1968 political actions that we can show before the year is over.

Black-Out Days: September 1, 8, 15, 29; October 20; November 2, 10, 17
Grey-Out Days: September 14, October 27, November 24

3. Cancelled Meeting? – We might cancel our July 9 meeting because if the trip to the Socialism 2018 conference goes as planned, we may not be back from Chicago in time for the meeting at 7. However, we decided to postpone officially cancelling or going ahead with the meeting until next week, where hopefully we will have a better projection of how the trip will go.

Meeting adjourned: 7:39 PM

Tabled items: Cancelled July 9 Meeting, Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop, more button parts)

In Attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:17 PM

1. Event Review – We had a discussion on the prison-industrial complex, which didn’t cover all the bases we could have, though it was still good for the big topic and the smaller time slot than we usually have.

2. Book and Zine – We picked up a free zine from DSA Lincoln’s booth at Feed the People for our zine archive, and Jackson donated a book that is rele

Meeting adjourned: 7:26 PM

Tabled items: Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop)

In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:00 PM

1. Upcoming Events – We have a Nebraska Left Conference organizational meeting, and we really just need to set up the room. The tables will then be broken down by Friday for our 5th year anniversary movie night! We also need to finalize pizza orders by that day and make a pre-scheduled purchase, perhaps the night before.

2. Calendar Distro – Ty wasn’t able to distro, and calendar distro will be kinda rough this week because of everyone’s schedules. Ty’s gonna try again this Tuesday and Wednesday after work.

3. Nebraska Left Conference – Jackson has officially volunteered our services with a workshop on running radical spaces for the conference. We also have a pretty comfortable treasury right now, so we’re thinking about donating some money. We’re thinking $200 up front, and also potentially donating more as needed.

Tabled items: Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop)

Meeting adjourned: 7:40 PM

In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary), Wyatt
Start time: 7:15 PM

(Meeting slightly delayed due to some post-yard sale clean-up time)

1. Event Review – We had our yard sale, and it was a success! We had less stuff to sell than years past, but we sold most everything we had, with a final total $726.90 funds raised altogether and only a few totes worth of stuff leftover to sell next year or via online sales.

2. Upcoming Events – We have a grand total of four days worth of events this week! A committee meeting to plan the Nebraska Left Conference is Tuesday, and we’re hosting. We just need to get the room cleaned up further after the sale. Friday night is Salt of the Earth. Hopefully since the room will already be clean by then, we only need to get the projector and screen up and call it good. Saturday/Sunday, the NE IWW will be here for organizer training. Same deal; should be clean, should be fine. We’ll see what kind of accommodations the group needs, as we’re still not sure the set-up they’d want.

3. Books – We got a ton of books for the library! The latest from AK Press came in, and we also got some donations from a friend. Jackson also bought some books and zines from Indigo Bridge during a sale, totaling $22.51, which he would like reimbursed. We’re chill with that.

4. Summer Calendar – Tentatively, the calendar is done!

June
Friday, June 1st, 7-10 PM: The Black Cat 5th Anniversary People’s Choice Movie Night
Saturday, June 9th, 2:30-4 PM: What is the Prison-Industrial Complex? (a community discussion)
Friday, June 22nd, 7-10 PM: Popcorn Politics: Moonlight

July
Friday, July 13th, 7-10 PM: Popcorn Politics: The Wind That Shakes The Barley
Saturday, July 21st, 1-3 PM: Reading Discussion: Confronting Conspiracy Theories

August
Friday, August 10th, 7-10 PM: Popcorn Politics: Shin Godzilla

“Why People Believe in Conspiracy Theories and How to Change Their Minds” – The Conversation
“What’s Wrong With Conspiracy Theories” – Socialist Worker Online

Blackout days: June 16 (Juneteenth), July 5-8 (ISO conference), last three weeks of August (Ty out of town and start of UNL school year)

Link June 9th discussion with June 11th: International Day of Solidarity with Marius Mason and All Long-Term Anarchist Prisoners

People’s Choice Options: Salt of the Earth (again), Dr. Strangelove, Terminal City Ricochet(?), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine “Past Tense, Pt. 1 and Pt. 2”

_In the Intense Now_ will probably not be on DVD in time to commit it to the summer calendar. We should check back when planning for fall.

Health care as a discussion subject?

Meeting adjourned: 9:02 PM

Tabled items: Summer Calendar, Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop)

In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:02 PM

1. Upcoming Event – We have the open house party on the horizon (Saturday, to be specific). We got several delicious treats, red decorations, and miscellaneous things like plates and straws for the punch, and Ty’s grandpa just delivered the punch bowl today. So we think we’re good to go. We were a little over-budget, but not by much and we’ll be enjoying the food anyway, so Jackson has been approved for reimbursement of the $50 we originally stated our budget to be. We will begin decorating for the event starting tomorrow.

2. Summer Calendar

June
Friday, June 1st, 7-10 PM: The Black Cat 5th Anniversary People’s Choice Movie Night
Saturday, June 9th, 1-3 PM: What is the Prison-Industrial Complex? (a community discussion)
TBA: Popcorn Politics

July
TBA: Reading Discussion (on antisemitism)? Documentary?
TBA: Popcorn Politics

August
TBA: Popcorn Politics

Blackout days: June 16 (Juneteenth), July 5-8 (ISO conference), last three weeks of August (Ty out of town and start of UNL school year)

Link June 9th discussion with June 11th: International Day of Solidarity with Marius Mason and All Long-Term Anarchist Prisoners

People’s Choice Options: Salt of the Earth (again), Dr. Strangelove, Terminal City Ricochet(?), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine “Past Tense, Pt. 1 and Pt. 2”

_In the Intense Now_ will probably not be on DVD in time to commit it to the summer calendar. We should check back when planning for fall.

Health care as a discussion subject?

Ty would like to screen the movie Moonlight for June (Pride Month) and Shin Godzilla for August (Popcorn Politics?).

Meeting adjourned: 8:12 PM

Tabled items: Summer Calendar, Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop)

In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Tanner, Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:01 PM

1. Event Review – We ran Anarchism in America, and Jackson asserts that it’s still a so-so documentary, but it gets people talking so it’s worth showing. It did not disappoint, as the turn-out was a pretty fair one for our documentary showings, and there was a lively discussion. We will definitely show it again in a few years.

2. Upcoming Event – We have a reading discussion on “Fueling Dissent” upcoming, not this week but as we don’t have a weekly meeting next week, we’re discussing it today. Tanner would like to introduce a supplemental reading of a report on Exxon Mobile in order to give people more context for our reading We haven’t included supplemental readings to these events before, but given that the executive summary is only a page-and-a-half and in fairly accessible terms, it won’t add too much length or complexity to the reading so it’ll be acceptable. Tanner’s suggestion is to lead with the summary, which Jackson and Ty think is fine.

We also worked on compiling the documents into a single one, and putting the Facebook event.

3. Pom Poko – We got the DVD in! So we’re ready for that event too.

4. Books – We got a copy of the book “Gay Berlin” donated to us for our library, which we gratefully accepted. Ty also wants to buy a copy of Cartoon Punk: Artists Against Fascism, which is an antifa comic anthology, for our library and would like to be reimbursed the $20 to purchase it. Everyone else says that’s cool, so he went ahead and ordered it.

5. Button Order Follow-Up – Jackson cashed the check for the button order we filled, so that’s $155 that will be added to our treasury records soon.

Meeting adjourned: 8:16 PM

Tabled items: Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop)

In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:00 PM

1. Event Review – We had a Popcorn Politics event, which went well and the discussion was good. We did get one person back who had only been to one other event here prior, the Russian Revolution discussion. We got some feedback on that event, though we’re not entirely sure as of yet how to use it and improve events to come, but it’s something we can ponder, process, and evaluate for further discussions like it.

2. Meeting Cancellation – Next Monday there is a forum on organized labor that we don’t want to compete with (and that we most likely will go to ourselves). So we are opting to cancel next week’s weekly meeting. Jackson will also share as much on the Facebook, as well as share info on the forum in question. Jackson also brought up that he will be gone on April 9th, so we are preemptively canceling the meeting that would have been on that date as well.

3. No Ban, No Wall – ISO is sending two people for the “No Ban, No Wall” immigrant rights discussion that we are cosponsoring. UNL isn’t charging for the room rental, and ISO is really only asking for gas money, so any money we donate will be going far to cover this event. There is talks, with the low expenses, of spending our extra funds on snacks for the event.

4. Button Order – A friend of Ty’s contacted us on behalf of his pride group to make a bulk order of pronoun and pride flag buttons. We’d need some more details, but since the friend needs an answer back from us by this Friday, Ty’s going to determine whether we offer to do it, or opt to direct him to another button source, and report back the next meeting we had on what he decided to do.

5. Friends of AK Press – We are officially Friends of AK Press! Ty reports back with the email we received saying as much, and we will begin to scheme soon about the anarchist literature we want to purchase for the library!

Meeting Adjourned: 7:45 PM
Tabled items: Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop)

In attendance: Jackson (moderator), Ty (secretary)
Start time: 7:03 PM

1. Event Review – We had our What is Transfeminism discussion on Saturday, and it was a good turnout and a lively talk. Ty thinks he might have been able to structure it a bit better, though he is unsure how he would have done so.

2. Upcoming Event – We have Popcorn Politics coming up, Mad Max: Fury Road! We’re confident we’ve got it ready to go!

3. Speaker – Jackson is working with the committee that was planning on organizing a leftist conference, to bring in a speaker instead. ISO is pushing for a speaker tour through the country in the spring and the committee is working with a few local reps of ISO to bring in a speaker from the ISO, specifically speaking about immigration. This will be on Tuesday, April 10, in the Heritage Room of UNL’s City Campus Union. We have been asked if The Black Cat House be one of the sponsors of this event, and we think that would be a good idea given that Jackson was already a part in getting the event organized.

4. Friends of AK Press – We’re still pondering whether we want to sign up for Friends of AK Press. The 1-year membership is $300, and Jackson believes we have the money for it now. We have agreed to bolster our anarchist literature with a membership, and signed up for it tonight.

Meeting Adjourned: 7:38 PM
Tabled items: Graphic Designer, Stuff to Buy (canopy, stuff to secure bike rack, labels, 7×7 no-slip outdoor mat for porch, new SSD hard drive for public laptop)