“Giving up was never an option for me”

Ever since he found out that was one of the ten law students with a disability who landed a paid internship with Mexico's Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation, Sergio Humberto Castillo Rodríguez's younger brother jokes that he can finally live off of his older brother.

Sergio dreams of being a Supreme Court Justice, but for the time being he prefers to set short-term goals that he can meet one step at a time.

His father, although excited and proud of his son, is a little worried with the new challenges that these responsibilities will mean for the 20-year-old junior law student at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) who was born with no arms.

During our interview with Sergio, he told us that he can do everything his peers can, he just sometimes has to find creative solutions to some of the challenges he faces on a day-to-day basis.

For example, to type on a computer, he uses his mouth and a pen to type on a keyboard. And at home, he uses his feet to do everything, including writing, typing and even playing games on his PlayStation.

At his new job, Sergio says his goal is to learn as much as possible from his new boss, Leticia Bonifaz, the Director of the Supreme's Court Department of Investigation, Advocacy and Development of Human Rights.

“I know there are sometimes moments in life that are more difficult than others, but that doesn't change my situation. Looking back at all of the hardships I've faced throughout my life, my choice was always to keep on going or give up; the latter was never option for me,” said Sergio.