The Goods

Book Nerds, Librarians, Teachers (+ Cat Ladies) For Kamala Harris and Tim Walz

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Jamie Canaves

Contributing Editor

Jamie Canavés is the Tailored Book Recommendations coordinator and Unusual Suspects mystery newsletter writer–in case you’re wondering what you do with a Liberal Arts degree. She’s never met a beach she didn’t like, always says yes to dessert, loves ‘80s nostalgia, all forms of entertainment, and can hold a conversation using only gifs. You can definitely talk books with her on Litsy and Goodreads. Depending on social media’s stability maybe also Twitter and Bluesky.

A United States vice-presidential nominee publicly attacking women who don’t have children and dragging cats into it sounds like it could only be an Onion headline but, alas, ever since Republicans have feared losing power, they’ve leaned so far into cruelty, weirdness, word salads, white nationalism, and attacking marginalized communities that this really happened. In a 2021 interview, JD Vance said Democrats were being run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they’ve made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too.” The video made the rounds again when he became the Republican vice-presidential nominee. He then defended his comments by saying Democrats have become “anti-family and anti-children” while continuing to not actually help families and children: JD Vance Says the Solution to the Childcare Crisis Is to Have Grandparents Do It for Free.

The responses were quick (Are Childless Males Hurting America?; On Cat Ladies, Mama Bears and ‘Momala’), and hilarious. And because there is no bottom, it was only the beginning: “JD Vance attacks childless teachers in newly resurfaced remarks.” I personally feel anyone who is more comfortable attacking women’s choices than ordering donuts should absolutely not be in a government position that is designed to work for all. So make sure you’re registered to vote (“Check your voter registration status here. You need to do this sooner, rather than later. Once you have verified your registration status, take a screenshot and save it to your phone. No registered voters can be removed from rolls 90 or fewer days from the election. Use this screenshot if you are challenged at the polls.”), have a plan to vote, and wherever/however you can, volunteer.

Then have fun showing your support thanks to Etsy seemingly exploding overnight with all the cat ladies, bibliophiles, book nerds, teachers, and librarians for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz merch. From yard signs to T-shirts, people are fired up, cracking jokes again, and joining the movement to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz on November 5th, so I rounded up 11 items.

a tote back with an illustration of a cat riding a dinosaur that says "childless cat lady against the patriarchy"
Image by PrideForAllKinds on Etsy.

Childless Cat Lady Tote Bag ($31): Here is the awesome world that conservatives, and the Trump / Vance ticket, are trying to keep us from on a tote bag.

a beige tshirt with an illlustration of a black cat sitting at a table reading a book with text that says read. think vote
Image by EverythingAfterCo on Etsy.

Read Think Vote Shirt ($30): Listen to the “meow-some childless cat lady!”. (5 color options, up to 3XL size.)

a cream colored sweatshirt with an illustration of a woman and cat reading with text saying "childless cat lady bookclub plenty of time to read and vote"
Image by sweetsanity on Etsy

Childless Cat Lady Sweatshirt ($35): Sounds like a paw-tastic book club that has its priorities in order. (6 color options, size up to 5XL)

a blue garden flag with the illustration of a cat in glasses and a stack of books that say "library workers for Harris bans off our books"
Image by SprinklesStudios on Etsy

Library Workers for Kamala Harris Garden Flag ($22): What a smart and lovely kitty, ready to protect access to books. (Image also available on stickers.)

tote bags with a screenprint of a cat that say "childless cat ladies vote" and "childless cat ladies for Kamala"
Image by WillowCherryPrints on Etsy

Childless Cat Ladies Vote Tote Bag ($15): Look at this cat with equal parts attitude and hope!

a bumper sticker with an illustration of library shelves and people that says "pro-library and I vote"
Image by CancelEmpires on Etsy.

Public Library Car Magnet ($12): If you want some info on how public libraries are under attack: How Public Libraries Are Targeted Right Now—It’s Not “Just” Books

a vinly sticker with an illustration of a cat sleeping on an opened book that says "bookish cat ladies for Kamala"
Image by CozyCatDesignCo on Etsy

Bookish Cat Ladies for Kamala Sticker ($6): A lovely sticker that you can also use as a bookmark.

a sticker of an illustration of a red apple with the quote "never underestimate a public school teacher -- Tim Walz"
Image by McKeanAndCo on Etsy.

Never Underestimate A Public School Teacher Sticker ($4): When you’re never properly funded, you are resourceful in getting what you need for your students.

a distressed beige baseball cap that says "never underestimate a public school teacher - Tim Walz"
Image by ToBeAWomanIn2024 on Etsy.

Tim Walz Hat ($30): In case you prefer Tim Walz’s quote on a distressed cap. (5 color options)

a tshirt with graphic lettering saying "childless teacher for Kamala Harris"
Image by by beardenvintageshop on Etsy.

Childless Teacher for Kamala Harris T-shirt ($21): A person’s procreation status is not an indication of their worth or ability to teach. (4 color options, sizing up to 5X)

a tote bag with a graphic image of a cat's face and text saying "cat ladies vote"
Image by AscendantFireDesigns on Etsy.

Cat Ladies Vote Tote Bag ($19): And finally, because you can’t ever have enough tote bags, here’s one more for all the cat ladies voting.

If you’re looking to learn more, here’s Books By and About Vice President Kamala Harris for Readers of All Ages, and you can stay up to date on all the censorship news by following our Literary Activism.