University of Canterbury Law Student Erin Gough is Youth Award Finalist

Erin Gough is a third-year law student at University of Canterbury (UC). The school was established by scholars from the University of Oxford in the 19^th century and is New Zealand's second-oldest university. The main campus is located at IIam, a blooming suburb of Christchurch, New Zealand. The university's curriculum includes engineering, education, science, law, music, and speech and language therapy.

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Erin has cerebral palsy (CP), a condition that causes physical disability in human development and mainly effects areas of body movement. However, CP hasn't slowed the twenty-year-old law student from assisting other people in her Christchurch community. According to a Voxy.co.nz article “UC law student a finalist in AZ Attitude disability awards,” Erin grew up in South Africa and saw her country divided because of apartheid. Racial inequality and CP made her believe that she could make a difference in the world.

This third-year law student is Vice President of Junior Chamber International (JCI) Christchurch, a local subdivision of the international organization. Although JCI operates several international charities, the main goal of the local chapters is to focus on local communities. Erin also participates in the Otautahi Youth Council (OYC). This independent youth organization represents the opinions and views of young individuals in Christchurch.

A University of Canterbury's editorial, “Student finalist in AZ Attitude disability awards,” quoted Erin when she said, “I kind of met different people and just got involved. I think it's such a great opportunity, and as a young disabled person, I had a role to advocate for a more accessible city.”

The university's column also cited the law student when she stated, “Before the earthquake, I wasn't really active in anything, but I am now. It was the earthquake and experiencing that whole thing and the Student Volunteer Army. As I couldn't join in the physical work, I kind of looked for other ways to contribute in Christchurch and to the recovery and the rebuild.”

Erin has been very active in her community. She even had the opportunity to coordinate The Amazing Race: The Accessibility Edition. The Amazing Race is a popular reality show created by Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri. Teams of two individuals travel across the globe while competing with other teams. The main objective is to arrive first at your destination, which allows you to advance further in the game and avoid elimination. The winners at each stage of the game also win prizes. Erin received the Ernst and Young Award for organizing the accessibility event on campus.

On September 26, 2012, it was announced that Erin is a candidate for a Youth award in the New Zealand Attitude Awards. The Attitude Awards honors individuals who endure a disability and do the best that they can in their life. According to the Voxy.co.nz editorial, there are eight categories in the Attitude Awards. The finalist for each award will find out if they won on November 29. The celebration takes place in Auckland, New Zealand.

The University of Canterbury article reported that Erin has received a donation from the Oxfam International Youth Partnerships Fund to establish a global set of connections via a website. The site is for young individuals who have a disability. She told UC, “I am currently seeking and collating blog posts from young disabled people around the world, which will be posted on the site as soon as we finish the design.”

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Indeed, Erin is very passionate about gathering blog posts from disabled people. She posted her own work, “I am Cerebral Palsy,” on her own blog. The poem gives people who don't suffer from CP a glimpse at what it must feel like to live with a disability. Walkingisoverated.com reprinted the poem:

I make life difficult
I tear families apart
I do not have a cure
I break some parents' hearts

I force kids to go through therapy
To endure a surgery or two
So that they have a chance of walking
Those strong enough to defeat me are few

I force kids to sit on the sideline
Of their brother's soccer game
They can only dream of playing
Dreams and reality are not the same

I affect the way they catch and throw
The way they run and walk
The way their muscles work
The way they whisper and talk

I own them like I own a slave
Their soul is surely mine
They cannot break free of me
Until the time comes when they die

I hold them captive day in day out
And make them hate me so
Sometimes they wish me on others
And long with all their heart that I'd go

When they reach high school
People see me, not the person inside
Who would ask such a person out on a date?
Instead they cover their faces and hide

I come in many forms
From mild to very severe
But no matter what form I may take
I am always near

Behind closed doors, they weep
Tears of sadness and of pain
They hate that they cannot be normal
I smile smugly to myself in vain

My name is Cerebral Palsy
I am a cruel disability
And although I am not fatal
Some wish I was half-heartedly

I will my follow my victims
For as long as they shall live
I will take, and take, and take from them
Until they have nothing left to give

Eventually I will let them go
And then they will be left free
Even so, I'll haunt them at their graves
And remind them that I am still me

My name is Cerebral Palsy
I own you, my puppet on a string
You are mine, and so's your soul
Until you grow those angel wings…

What will Erin do after she graduates from UC? Voxy.co.nz reported that the law student would eventually practice law that was connected to disability issues. She said, “When I finish my time at UC, I would like to put my law degree to use by doing a job that involves creating social change through advocating for a local not-for-profit/non-governmental organisation, around human rights and disability issues. But I may end up practicing some type of law—perhaps related to human rights and disability issues.”

Erin is an inspiration not only to individuals afflicted with a disability but to everybody who takes life for granted. She hasn't let CP get in her way of accomplishing her goals in life. Erin has been involved in many organizations in her community and will continue to be a major influence in Christchurch, especially after she graduates with her J.D. degree. One can say that CP has been a driving force that keeps Erin going in life, perhaps to motivate others with a disability or disease. Others will surely look up to her and say, “If she can do it, so can I.”

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