Brandeis junior Daniel Mael. Photo: Screenshot / Twitter.

Daniel Mael

Brandeis University student

In the last few months, Daniel Mael, a 22 year-old business major at Brandeis University, has established himself as one of the most courageous young Jewish leaders in America today. He’s done so at considerable risk to himself and his reputation among his peers. Never one to shy away from a just cause, Mael has – through his investigative journalism and broadcast media appearances – shone a much-needed light on the toxic state of university politics. But when Mael exposed the offensive tweets of a far left, anti-Israel Brandeis activist concerning the murder of two New York police officers in December 2014, his opponents tried to vilify him as racist, showering abuse and even threats upon him. Yet Mael’s resolve remains unbowed. As he explained to The Wall Street Journal, his enemies “try to intimidate students into being silent, in the interest of people’s feelings not being hurt, rather than encourage debate.”