In attendance: Jackson (secretary), Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:05 PM

1. Event Reviews – We had two events this weekend.

First, Payne gave his propaganda presentation here on Saturday afternoon. It wasn’t well attended, and we had some discussion about why that may have been. We were very slow getting it advertised online. Jackson also pointed out that presentations are easier to advertise and generally more attractive to audiences if the speaker is an expert. We were generally in agreement that we will want to prioritize getting experts to give presentations in the future.

Payne and Salem also tabled at Pepe Fest on Sunday afternoon. They gave out some buttons and stickers, and collected some email addresses for our newsletter. They felt that we were one of the less popular tables there, but Jackson is less concerned as we were a bit out of place in that space. (The event was advertised primarily as a space where small makers would be selling art, jewelry, and other wares.)

2. Library Donations – We added a few books from Ty and Marc, as well as a book that Ryan brought us at the yard sale.
3. Emails – Jackson reported on two emails we received in our “contact” account. Author Nico Lang wrote us to say that he’s giving a talk about trans youth at Sower Books on May 31st, inviting us to attend and asking us to help promote the event. We’ll share his flyer on our social media.

In the other message, Aaron from Lincoln DSA asked about the availability of our space on the evening of June 20th for one of their discussion groups. Our space is available, though Payne and Salem will be out of state. Jackson will write Aaron back and say that DSA is welcome to meet here.

4. June Meetings – Payne and Salem will probably be unavailable on Mondays at 7 PM throughout the month of June, although things are expected to get back to normal in July. Payne asked about the possibility of temporarily moving the weekly meetings, but Jackson is more concerned that advertising a temporary change for anyone else concerned is probably a bigger headache than it’s worth. With June’s meetings likely to be relatively light in importance, Jackson will continue to host at 7 PM in case anyone else shows up while Payne and Salem can stay in the loop via our Discord server.
5. Summer Calendar – We finalized it! At last!!

JUNE

Saturday, June 7th, 1-3 PM: Safety in Numbers: How Do We Protect Ourselves in a Protest?
A community discussion about defending our rights in rallies

Friday, June 27th, 7-10:30 PM: Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
2024 documentary about the CIA using Black-American musicians to spy on African governments in 1960

JULY

Saturday, July 12th, 1-3 PM: Malcolm X in His Own Words (a reading discussion)
Celebrating the 100th birthday of the legendary human rights fighter from Omaha

Friday, July 18th, 7-10 PM: Movie Night: Pride (2014)
Queer youth and striking coal miners build solidarity during the Thatcher years of the 1980s

AUGUST

Friday, August 8th, 7-10 PM: Movie Night: White Light/Black Rain: The Destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
2007 documentary about the U.S. military’s 1945 atomic bombings of Japan includes interviews with Japanese survivors

Saturday, August 23rd, 1-3 PM: Winslow’s Wardrobe
FREE gender-affirming clothes for trans/queer folks just in time for Back to School!

Likely summer tabling that we need to follow up on next week, but we won’t bother advertising on the calendar:

We may be tabling at Star City Pride on June 13th and 14th
Tabling at Juneteenth? (June 21st, Noon-3PM, Woods Park – 33rd and J) [Note that Payne and Salem will be out of state…]
Disability Pride – Saturday, July 26th Antelope Park 9AM-1PM
Free Pride events potentially on June 28th?

Meeting adjourned: 9:00 PM

In attendance: Jackson (secretary), Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:12 PM

1. Event Review/Reimbursement – 2025 Fundraiser

We had our annual yard sale fundraiser on Friday and Saturday, which was combined with our first-ever bake sale fundraiser. We suffered through two very hot days, and we managed to gross $1348.87 despite having kind of an off year in terms of the quantity and quality of items donated to the yard sale. As has been the case with the last couple of years, we will likely raise a little more money as Jackson will be listing some of the exceptional leftovers on the Facebook Marketplace.

The bake sale was fairly well received, but we produced far more baked goods than we could sell. It wasn’t realistic for us to measure exact sales, but Jackson estimates that the bake sale at least broke even considering the (admittedly excessive, in hindsight) cost of the ingredients and supplies that we had to buy and be reimbursed for. Because we are all broke, and the sale did well overall, Jackson recommended that we all get reimbursed for the things we had to buy for the bake sale. Jackson will be reimbursed $61.01, while Payne will be reimbursed $108.41. Salem was reimbursed $14.90 tonight, but more will be owed later (as they didn’t have all relevant receipts in hand tonight).

We are not sure if we will do another bake sale next year, but we did spend several minutes critiquing things that we will need to do better in case we do try again. Payne acknowledged that we will need to produce much less overall; our overall production should be no more than half of what was made this year, and the vegan offerings will be reduced even further as they performed much worse than we thought they might. Jackson pointed out that certain things like vegan chocolate chips, vegan butter, and using ziplock bags to hold the finished goods for sale were particularly too expensive and that they will have to be avoided in the future unless we can find them much cheaper. We will also need to avoid some of the mistakes that ruined the entire batch of vegan oatmeal-chocolate-chip cookies and the first batch of vegan brownies. The suggested donations being expressed in a range was confusing and counter-productive; we should only do one price in the future. The prices themselves may have been too high for many of our would-be customers; it occurred to Jackson and Ty during the sale that our bake sale was more like a coffee shop, and that most of the people who frequent yard sales aren’t necessarily the type who buy their sweets at Starbucks…

The lemonade did moderately well, although we can also probably cut its production numbers similarly to the bake sale items. The tea and water did very poorly, so we probably won’t try those again. Payne suggested possibly serving Gatorade and lemonade next time.

2. Upcoming Events – We have our propaganda event on Saturday afternoon, and we’re tabling at Pepe Fest on Sunday afternoon.

We still haven’t advertised this event online! Payne brought a draft to the meeting, and Jackson will tweak it for publishing. Jackson will get the space cleaned up, but it’s a big job after the sale. Payne reported that he is working on the presentation; Jackson encourages him to shorten it, as most people struggle to keep their attention span when one person lectures for more than 45 minutes to an hour. Jackson thinks a 45 minute presentation is ideal, as our guests are more likely to absorb material that they can interact with via Q&A and/or discussion afterwards.

Salem and Payne are tabling at Pepe Fest on Sunday afternoon. We’ll gather materials for that on Saturday, when the room is in better shape. We will be giving away stickers, buttons, and zines.

3. Summer Calendar –

We may be tabling at Star City Pride on June 13th and 14th
Tabling at Juneteenth? (June 21st, Noon-3PM, Woods Park – 33rd and J) [Note that Payne and Salem will be out of state…]
Disability Pride – Saturday, July 26th Antelope Park 9AM-1PM
Free Pride events potentially on June 28th?
Payne and Salem out of state June 18th-22nd

Saturday, June 7th, 1-3 PM: Protest/Rally Etiquette and Safety in Early June
Friday, June 27th, 7-10 PM: Movie Night TBA

July – Malcolm X 100th birthday tribute? Jackson thinks a reading discussion may be ideal, to hear Malcolm in his own words. Jackson will look for an article or speech transcript.

Friday, August XX, 7-10 PM: Movie Night: White Light/Black Rain
Saturday, August XX, 1-3 PM: Winslow’s Wardrobe (Jackson needs to confirm the date with their folks)

Documentary idea: Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat (African-American music month); Jackson has seen it, and while he liked it he had concerns that the movie doesn’t explain a lot of things that a non-expert

Movie Night: Pride (2014)

July 18th is Nelson Mandela International Day

Salem suggested some kind of event with tips for staying cool with lower energy costs; Payne suggests adding some kind of staying safe in the heat component to it.

Meeting adjourned: 9:00 PM

In attendance: Dan (late), Jackson (secretary), Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:32 PM

1. Yard Sale/Bake Sale – It’s happening this week! We’re all kind of stressed out, but excited to get it done. We worked out some last-minute logistics.
2. Pepe Fest – We’ve been accepted to table at Pepe Fest. We’ll put some some stuff together for it next week after we’re done with the big fundraiser.
3. Summer Calendar

We may be tabling at Star City Pride on June 13th and 14th
Tabling at Juneteenth?
Disability Pride – Saturday, July 26th Antelope Park 9AM-1PM
Free Pride events?

Protest/Rally Etiquette and Safety in Early June

Documentary idea: Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat (African-American music month); Jackson has seen it, and while he liked it he had concerns that the movie doesn’t explain a lot of things that a non-expert

Movie Night: Pride (2014)

July 18th is Nelson Mandela International Day

Movies to commemorate the atomic bombing of Japan for August: Barefoot Gen, White Light/Black Rain

Malcolm X’s 100th birthday is in May; can we do something to honor that?

Salem suggested some kind of event with tips for staying cool with lower energy costs; Payne suggests adding some kind of staying safe in the heat component to it.

Meeting adjourned: 8:55 PM

In attendance: Jackson (secretary), Nate, Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:15 PM

1. Event Review – We asked Payne and Salem to give us a report on their tabling at Lincoln Earth Day. They collected a page full of folks who signed up for our newsletter. They handed out pins and stickers, but would have liked to have more Black Cat swag. We forgot to pack along our table banner, which was a big mistake. Payne would have also like an awning and a collection of small rocks to weigh down our papers so they don’t blow away.
2. Book donation – Margaret is donating a book to our library about asexuality. We think it will fit in nicely.
3. Pepe Fest – A local activist at Lincoln Earth Day invited us to table at “Pepe Fest” on Sunday, May 18th from 12-4 PM. We signed up for it, and we will hope to hear back from their staff in the next week.
4. May Events – We need to get our other May events uploaded to our Internet spots! Jackson will be working on the movie night, but would like Payne to get at least a paragraph about the propaganda presentation offered.
5. Bake Sale – Payne is planning to buy whatever ingredients are still needed on or around May 5th, so this is our last week to solicit donations for that. As of right now, he’s estimating that we’ll need to buy about $200 worth of supplies. We may be putting a suggested
6. Yard Sale Updates –
7. Summer Calendar

We may be tabling at Star City Pride on June 13th and 14th
Tabling at Juneteenth?
Disability Pride – Saturday, July 26th Antelope Park 9AM-1PM
Free Pride events?

Protest/Rally Etiquette and Safety in Early June

Documentary idea: Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat (African-American music month); Jackson has seen it, and while he liked it he had concerns that the movie doesn’t explain a lot of things that a non-expert

Movie Night: Pride (2014)

July 18th is Nelson Mandela International Day

Movies to commemorate the atomic bombing of Japan for August: Barefoot Gen, White Light/Black Rain

Malcolm X’s 100th birthday is in May; can we do something to honor that?

Meeting adjourned: 9:00 PM

In attendance: Alice, Dan (late), Jackson (secretary), Nate, Nick
Start time: 7:05 PM

1. Event Review – We tabled at Lincoln Earth Day. Payne and Salem did most of the work, but they’re not here tonight to report nor did they have time to return our supplies. Jackson made a brief appearance as well, and did see that we were going to get a lot of new names on our newsletter list.
2. Bake Sale – Jackson met with Payne on Wednesday afternoon. We think we have the final menu for the bake sale determined, and Jackson shared a list of ingredients that we’re still seeking donations of to several of our online places.
3. Yard Sale – We’re accepting donations now, but it’s been the usual slow start. Jackson is still hoping to find more help especially for the Friday morning setup. Jackson thinks we may need 4-6 more yard signs; Nate thinks he may be able to help with putting those together.
4. Brochure – We brainstormed on what kind of content might go into a “What is the Black Cat House”? There was discussion of Black Cat history, event formats (movie nights, discussions, presentations), where to find us online, library, resources for activists (meeting space, copy machine), and maybe the garden?

Meeting adjourned: 8:25 PM

In attendance: Jackson (secretary), Maia, Nate, Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:10 PM

1. Event Review – We had our Manufacturing Consent movie night on Friday night. We had an ok turnout, and a better discussion.
2. Upcoming Event – We are tabling at Lincoln Earth Day on Saturday. Matt will be picking up Payne and Salem to get them to Innovation Campus. Jackson will round up the relevant Black Cat materials.
3. Bake Sale – We had another extended discussion trying to sort out the logistics of this bake sale. We’re still trying to finalize our menu and production quantities. Jackson will be meeting separately with Payne and Salem on Wednesday to try to get this sorted out ASAP.

Meeting adjourned: 8:30 PM

In attendance: Jackson (secretary), Maia, Nate, Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:05 PM

1. Event Review – The neurodiversity discussion was on Saturday. It had a good turnout, though there were some issues with one particular guest who was disruptive in an off-topic kind of way. Payne and Salem seemed happy with the event overall.
2. Upcoming Event – Our Manufacturing Consent movie night is this Friday. We’re ready for it.
3. Bake Sale – We had another extended discussion on the logistics of the bake sale. We think Payne will set up his table down on the corner where the sidewalks meet, as that’s the most visible place. We should look into some kind of pop-up awning/tent to keep him out of the sun as much as possible. We have plenty of coolers here for ice and whatever else. Payne will probably be shopping for whatever missing ingredients he needed in early May, so we have a deadline of May 1st to seek donated ingredients/supplies. It sounds like we have several backyard chicken farmers in our networks, and Jackson really wants to emphasize finding some egg donations from those folks.
4. Promotional Pamphlet/Brochure – Nate would like us to create some kind of informational tri-fold pamphlet. The discussion on this item was unfortunately brief and somewhat unfocused. There was some talk of the logistics of duplicating this pamphlet. Jackson noted that we have a copy machine here, while Payne also volunteered his services especially if it is to be printed/copied in color. Payne asked if such a brochure could potentially replace our handbill fliers, but we probably wouldn’t do that as putting specific upcoming events on such a pamphlet would make them dated really quickly. Maia pointed out that this potential pamphlet could still include a broad description of activities at the House: movie nights, community discussion, annual yard sale fundraiser, etc. More discussion on this concept will be needed on a night where we’re not spending so much time on more urgent items.
5. Summer Calendar – We were running behind by the time we got to the summer calendar discussion again. Should we table at Disability Pride or Juneteenth?

Meeting adjourned: 8:40 PM

In attendance: Jackson (secretary), Jeremiah, Maia, Payne, Salem, Ty
Start time: 7:15 PM

1. Event Review – We had our queer mental health event with Kindred Psychology on Thursday night. We had a good turnout, and our crowd was very engaged in the material. Our speaker made a passing comment during the presentation about being interested in some kind of continuing relationship between Kindred and the Black Cats. Payne will follow up about that.
2. Upcoming Event – Our neurodiversity discussion is coming up on Saturday. Jackson will be unable to attend, but he’ll still have the room ready. We discussed the possibilities of having Payne, Salem, and Matt (who is also planning to attend) potentially co-moderating the event.
3. Donations – Ty brought some buttons that will probably be nice giveaways at upcoming Earth Day and Pride tabling. He also brought some books for our lending library.
4. Website – Jackson reports that our website has been down four times in the last week. We may be having issues with malware, and the Bluehost tech support folks are trying to sell us on some security upgrades. We’re asking Marc to look into this for us and give us some recommendations. Jackson says that we could probably afford some security upgrades, but we don’t want to buy them if we don’t need them.
5. April Newsletter/Events – Jackson will be getting an April newsletter out to our listserv in the next few days. He asked if anyone wanted to make contributions; Ty emphasized that it should include a call for donations for our yard sale next month. Jackson also volunteered to get our latter two April events online ASAP. Since both the Manufacturing Consent movie night and tabling at Lincoln Earth Day are both things we’ve done previously, it should be a simple matter of recycling old event descriptions. Payne asked that the movie night advertisement also include a plug for the propaganda event coming up in May.
6. Bake Sale – We had an extended discussion about the logistics of the bake sale that Payne is adding to our yard sale fundraiser this year. He is reasonably confident about providing conventional and vegan treats, and is also planning to have lemonade and tea. The logistics of offering gluten-free goodies is a bit trickier; it may require finding a gluten-free kitchen to prepare them in to prevent cross-contamination. Payne is curious about reimbursement options for having to buy ingredients; Jackson suggests that we put out a call for the ingredients we will need and see if our community wants to donate what we need. (For example, it would be tremendously helpful if one or more of our backyard chicken-farming friends were to donate eggs.)
7. Summer Calendar – We were already running out of time, but we extended the meeting to briefly discuss an event that Salem strongly believes we should add to our next calendar: Protest/Rally Etiquette and Safety. We all agreed that it would be a timely addition, even if it’s just an informal community discussion where some veteran protesters can come and share some tips for the folks who are newly getting active in response to Trump’s return to the White House. Ty recommended scheduling it early in our calendar, possibly in the first half of June.

Meeting adjourned: 8:40 PM

In attendance: Jackson (secretary), Jared, Maia, Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:05 PM

1. Event Review – We had our Killing Us Softly 4 movie night on Friday night. We had a solid turnout and a spirited discussion afterwards. It was unfortunately a bit triggering for Salem, though.
2. Upcoming Event – We have our LGBTQ Mental Health event coming up this Thursday night. Jackson wants to know if our speaker will be wanting to run a presentation on our projector; we may need a copy of it in advance, as the projector may not talk to computers besides Jackson’s.
3. Neurodiversity Event – It’s now online, so invite your friends! Jackson may be double-booked, and may not be available for all of this event (but he will still make sure the room is ready, even if he can’t be there).
4. Mask Policy – We had an extended discussion about the pros and cons of our current mask policy in the house. Under present circumstances, we will continue our current policy into the foreseeable future. We will remain open to re-evaluation if conditions change down the road.

Meeting adjourned: 8:30 PM

In attendance: Audrey, Jackson (secretary), Payne, Salem
Start time: 7:10 PM

1. Event Review – Winslow’s Wardrobe was back here on Saturday. The turnout was slow, but the folks from Winslow thought it wasn’t unusual for one of their winter distros. They are tentatively coming back in the summer (likely in August for Back-to-School).
2. Upcoming Event/Reimbursement – Our _ Killing Us Softly 4_ movie night is this Friday. Jackson will be reimbursed $27.94 for buying the DVD for this movie. We are ready for the movie night on Friday.

Meeting adjourned: 8:10 PM