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Emma Mair

2017-2018 Rising Voices Fellow Emma Mair

Emma Mair is a student at Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts. Emma is a 2017-2018 Rising Voices Fellowship alumna and the rabbinic intern at her congregation on the North Shore. She is a life-long dancer of many disciplines, an avid reader, and an enthusiastic napper. An activist since birth, Emma cares deeply about issues regarding gender, race, environmental sustainability, and animal rights.

Blog Posts

Sargassum Seaweed

Seaweed: What's Judaism Got to Do with It?

Emma Mair

Jewish tradition teaches us to care for our planet, preserve our natural resources, and generate new resources for coming generations.

Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel on the Selma March, March 21, 1965

The Privilege to be an Activist

Emma Mair

I’ve had it with white people–myself included. I don’t consider myself to be a shining example of a good activist, especially when it comes to issues that primarily affect communities of color; and, I know I say ignorant things sometimes, but I’m trying. I’m really trying. 

Topics: Civil Rights
Emma Mair in Jerusalem

Debbie Coltin: Now on Your Radar

Emma Mair

When you google Debbie Coltin, not much comes up. If you ask her why, she’ll say it’s because she’s a private person; she’d much rather fly under the radar. But as a writer, a Jew, and a young woman, I feel that Debbie’s contributions to Massachusetts’s North Shore Jewish community are too valuable to simply “fly under the radar.” Luckily, since Debbie has given me permission to share her story, they no longer have to!

Poster for The L Word

Taking an L? Maybe, maybe not.

Emma Mair

First aired on Showtime in 2004, The L Word became the first ever TV series that documented the lives of an ensemble of queer women. Modeled after the life of creator, screenwriter, and director, Ilene Chaiken, The L Word includes a groundbreaking set of TV firsts: television’s first deaf lesbian, its first regularly occurring transgender character, and its first interracial lesbian couple. The L Word pushed social boundaries and explored taboo themes such as: bisexuality, gender nonconformity, same-sex parenting, addiction, and rape. Over the almost 14 years since the show was first aired, The L Word has received much praise for its intimate storylines, representative depiction of the lesbian community, smart humor, and affinity for drama. However, because a monolithic gay experience or gay culture does not exist, The L Word didn’t (and perhaps couldn’t) capture the full picture of what it means to be a lesbian.

Topics: Television
Rising Voices and Havdallah Candle (Winter 2018)

Rising Voices Fellows Respond to Parkland

Emma Mair

In response to the Parkland school shooting on February 14, 2018, JWA’s Rising Voices Fellows decided to put their minds together and do what they do best: write. These are the stories of teenage girls from all over the United States, who have grown up after Columbine, after 9/11, and in the age of gun violence and terrorism.

Rising Voices Fellow Emma Mair at her Bat Mitzvah

The First Hero

Emma Mair

Robert Lappin, Jewish philanthropist and the man who’s foundation sent me to Israel this past summer, has said that interfaith families who choose to raise their kids Jewish are the heroes of Judaism. With Jews making up only .2% of the global population, Judaism is both the oldest and the smallest monotheistic religion, meaning that families who tackle raising their children Jewish in this Christian-normative society are much needed. 

Topics: Children, Bible
Emma Mair with Family

Two Jews, Many Opinions

Emma Mair

In the 12th century the great Jewish philosopher Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, commonly referred to as Maimonides, put together the Thirteen Principles of Judaism. The Thirteen Principles serve as the fundamental truths of the Jewish religion, and in many congregations it’s customary to say “Ani Maamin” (I believe) when reciting them.

Topics: Philosophy, Talmud
Rising Voices Fellow Emma Mair with her Cousin Izzy

A Letter to My Little Cousin

Emma Mair

In the past year a lot has changed in the world that we live in, and all of these changes–many scary–have inspired me to try my hardest to tell you the truth about the reality that girls once lived in, and the reality we live in today.

Rising Voices Fellow Emma Mair

From Scared to Empowered

Emma Mair

It happened at a bar mitzvah. I remember their faces as clear as day and their voices as dark as night. Encircled by seven boys, I couldn’t move and no one could see me. 

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How to cite this page

Jewish Women's Archive. "Emma Mair." (Viewed on December 11, 2024) <https://jwa.org/blog/author/emma-mair>.