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Edward S. Majian
Born: 1984, in Secaucus, NJ
Profession: Student, self-employed
Interests: Thought, reading, writing, music, Majik, philosophy, politics, social justice, poetry, peace, Art, culture, people, humanity, spirituality, etc.

Edward S. Majian is a magician, poet and writer. He currently studies philosophy, political science and social justice at Saint Peter’s College, in New Jersey. Ed has spoken at various conferences on the university level, and most recently, presented a talk at the United Nations in NYC, as a part of a panel, about forgiveness, by the American Psychological Association. There, he focused on genocide, denial, the possibility of reconciliation, and the significance of subjectivity in the establishment of a compassionate common dialoged, between Armenian and Turkish people in the contemporary era. Ed explored the need to forgive internally, without implying forgetfulness or an end to the exterior struggles for truth and justice.

In 2006, Ed was awarded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Commemoration Award by the State of New Jersey and the Philip Berrigan Social Justice Award by Saint Peter’s College. Additionally, he was the recipient of the 2006 Annual Krieger Award for essay writing on the topic of the Armenian Genocide and has spoken at the annual gathering and witness against the School of the Americas in Fort Benning, Georgia. Prior to joining the Journey For Humanity, Ed was sponsored by the Harvard Armenian Scholars and attended the two week intensive Zoryan University Program, Genocide and Human Rights, at the University of Toronto.

In his years before college, Ed began to develop and solidify his talents, views and personal philosophy. Before long, his work as a magician and poet became immensely philosophical as he began to utilize his art to explore the meanings of impossibility, worldly limitation, human ability and even “being.” These expressions and ideas took Ed all across the U.S. and beyond as he traveled, once with a metal band, performing Majik and giving presentations. Very realistically, his magic (or majik, as it was coined) became a manifestation of imagination, attempting to convey the potential for an alternate reality – one in which hopes and dreams are not irrationally limited by the “realism” of an increasingly cynical, analytic society.

Combined with his passionate study of philosophy and social justice, he applies this personal philosophy to aspirations for a universally better world. After the Journey For Humanity, Ed will return to his family, friends and academics. He hopes to eventually pursue a PhD, compile his poetry, other writings and continue to develop and synthesize his life’s work.

“Majik is the manifestation of imagination ... and poetry is the documentation of perception while philosophy elucidates both, the visible and the invisible. Always, we must think freely and strive to manifest the change that we wish to see in the world.” – E.S.M.