Hey Gritty Kitties. Welcome to Catty Chats from Cat Ladies for America where we talk to people who are trying to make things suck less in new and interesting ways.

In this episode we talk to Anne Lehman of the fames Smitten Kitten in Minneapolis: The adult sex toy shop & community hub were at the heart of a lot of the mutual aid and community resistance organizing in Minneapolis at the height of Metro Surge, continue to be, and were before Metro Surge came to town

We catch up with Anne to talk about not just things that happened back in December January February of 2026 but also what is still going on there. How desperately they need help. How while ice may have changed how many photo ops they take they are still decimating the community

They are also decimating the economy of that community. Destruction of property. There are businesses that can't find workers. There are all kinds of residual effects.

So what do they need now? An important thing to learn since this sort of siege & attack on how communities function is going happen in cities and counties on some level across in the United States.

And we also god damn it have some f*cking fun.

We have a new segment called 9 Vibes that I started with Anne cause I know her well enough to take a flyer on this one
We're gonna be doing it in every episode
called “9 vibes” - nine questions things like what is your laser pointer, and who's giving off Big Cat Energy.

Anne and I talk about how sometimes against our will we both wind up being the kind of optimist who think we should go ahead and try to put a show on in the barn.

But remember: everybody's gotta take a break sometimes. Once in a while you just gotta scream into a pillow or just out loud in the street just scream out loud in the street everyone will understand. I bet nobody would give you a moment's trouble if you just stood out in the street and yelled “everything this f*cking sucks!” In fact I might try it tomorrow

We also have a lot of ADHD fever dream going on between the two of us.

This episode is also an interesting behind the scenes look at how they got started in mutual aid long before metrosurge

And despite ourselves we have some f*cking fun.

Claws OUT! MEOW

#ice #icedetention #minneapolis #minnesota #election2026 #mutualaid