Being Jewish Today: Navigating Antisemitism Across the Spectrum of Jewish Life

Miriam “Mimi” Knoll, M.D., DABR is CEO of the Jewish Orthodox Women’s Medical Association (JOWMA), and is a radiation oncologist at Northwell Health. Dr. Knoll is an international speaker and researcher focusing on the medical workforce, women in medicine, and digital communication in medicine. Dr. Knoll is a writer and Forbes Healthcare contributor. She was named a Crain’s Healthcare leader in 2023 and City & State Trailblazer in Healthcare in 2025. You can follow her on Twitter @MKnoll_MD and on Instagram @Dr.Mimi.K.

Adam Pollack wakes up every day asking himself how he can bring meaning and purpose to the world. He sees 18Doors’s mission as the answer to that call by empowering interfaith families and couples to make Jewish choices and by helping Jewish organizations to become places of belonging for interfaith couples and families. Over his 20+ year career in the Jewish nonprofit sector, Adam has developed experience in philanthropy, organizational development, Jewish education and young adult engagement. Adam holds a MA in Jewish Experiential Education from The Jewish Theological Seminary and a Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Leadership and Management from ASU’s Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions.

In his spare time, Adam served on several local boards, including most recently at Sha’ar Zahav, a historically LGBTQ+ synagogue in San Francisco where he lives. On the weekends, he can be found running trails across the Bay Area and spending time with his husband, Nathan, and their dog, Stewie.

Rabbi Heather Miller is a professional educator and founder of The Multitudes, an organization that supports Jewish People of Color, promotes racial consciousness within Jewish communities and engages in bridge-building between the Black and Jewish communities. Between her workshops, public speaking and published work, Rabbi Heather’s work has reached over 8 million people. She was selected as one of NY Jewish Week’s 36 to Watch in 2023, has had her work featured on the internationally syndicated PBS show Table For All with Buki Elegbede and was honored to have spoken on the main stage at the 60th Commemoration of the March on Washington.  Though she serves the Jewish community in many capacities, her most cherished role is being the mother of three amazing boys who are descended from both formerly enslaved people and Holocaust survivors.

Tema Smith has served as ADL’s Director of Jewish Outreach & Partnerships since 2022. In this capacity, she oversees ADL’s engagement with national Jewish organizations, where she builds relationships to understand Jewish communal needs in fighting antisemitism and bias, and develops programs and initiatives to support the Jewish community nation-wide.

Before joining ADL, Tema served the Jewish community in numerous professional and volunteer roles, including Holocaust education, synagogue engagement, and professional development, and has served on the boards of numerous organizations. Her writing on timely themes, such as identity, antisemitism, and racism, has been featured in The Forward, the Globe and Mail, MyJewishLearning, and more. Her leadership in Jewish professional life has been recognized by her peers with a JPro Young Professionals Award in 2022.

Before becoming a Jewish professional, she studied 20th Century Jewish Philosophy and Political Thought at McMaster University as a graduate student in the Department of Religious Studies, and as a visiting graduate student at Hebrew University of Jerusalem.