Podcast: ‘We need to tell the story about Israel and we need to be on the front lines here in America’ with Adam Milstein and Maayan Jaffe-Hoffman

Adam Milstein, renowned American-Israeli philanthropist and founder of the Impact Forum Foundation, in conversation with Maayan Hoffman, Deputy CEO of the Jerusalem Post Group

Adam Milstein, renowned American-Israeli philanthropist and founder of the Impact Forum Foundation, speaks with Maayan Hoffman, Deputy CEO of the Jerusalem Post Group, about how to effectively fight antisemitism, strengthen the state of Israel and reinforce the alliance between the US and the State of Israel.

Milstein, who was born in Israel and served in the IDF during the Yom Kippur War, graduated from the Technion, and moved to the US in 1981. He continued his education at USC and embarked on a successful career in commercial real estate.

Today, Milstein spends a great deal of time in philanthropic causes dedicated to defending the State of Israel. “If you want to make an impact in philanthropy,” he says, “you need to devote a good portion of your life to it, you need to be focused and you need to know what you are doing.”

In 2006, Milstein co-founded the Israeli-American Council, which helps to strengthen the Israeli and Jewish identities of the more than half a million Israelis living in the US. Recently, he founded the Impact Forum Foundation, a community of like-minded philanthropists in Los Angeles and around the US that empowers a diversified network of organizations that support the State of Israel, fight antisemitism, and stand against the enemies of the US.

“Antisemitism is first and foremost an American problem,” says Milstein. “My approach to fighting antisemitism is to build alliances with Americans who are fighting the internal and external enemies of America, which also happen to be the enemies of the Jewish people and the State of Israel. Combating antisemitism and strengthening Israel go hand in hand with fighting the enemies of the US.”

Milstein says that while standard Jewish philanthropy supports Jewish education, trips to Israel and Holocaust commemoration, relatively little is earmarked to fight antisemitism. “We need to fight back, we need to go on the offense, and we need to be on the front lines here in America.”

This dialogue is the first of a series of interviews with Adam Milstein, who will share his vision and strategies for supporting Israel and combating antisemitism in future discussions.

For more information about the Milstein Family Foundation >>>