Hi my name is Janiru Herath. I am a junior anthropology major and I am from New Jersey.
I came upon the field of anthropology more
through my friends than anything else.
I've always liked having a broad
approach to a lot of things in my life.
I'm Sri Lankan by ethnicity,
my parents are both Sri Lankan. I was born and raised
in Japan
I moved to the United States when I was 10.
I lived in Illinois, Iowa, and New Jersey.
I've seen a lot of different kinds of cultures and 
ideals and beliefs with all the people I've
met through my life so
I think Anthropology has really helped me to
basically explore new options and
see things in a different light. The
class I take every single semester
vary so broadly in depth and scope.
Human archaeology and paleontology
to learning about working in the HIV-aids
community, see how things
within these communities are portrayed
in popular culture.
We have certain rhetoric and language
that we use to describe these populations 
that are marginalized all the time. I
thought I was pretty educated about HIV
and what it entails but
it was a great way for me to find  my
preconceived notions and my own little
ignorances and biases. We're stuck in books all the time you know, we're reading
different studies and reading about
different authors and philosophers and all that. 
Ethnography definitely gives you a way
to
engage from a personal perspective. It's a
professional job of learning about people. 
There are times throughout the semester where I have
been actively engaged in
ethnographies where I've been completely out
of my comfort zone. They help me too
understand myself in a better light and
in a way to be a more thorough person
I guess, in approach. Be
cognizant of the way other people think
be cognizant of the way that I think and realize that
there are still gaps in the way that I
perceive things
I really want to go into the field of public
health, particularly in the field of
maternal and child health
I want to work with marginalized
communities and basically try to implement
social changes in policy changes
Anthropology has been absolutely paramount
in helping me
reach that goal. I can't even put a value
onto it. 
I love the field that I'm in. 
