The Body's Claim to Justice

Underlying all of Sor Juana's intellectual work was an implicit claim: that her body, as a woman's body, had rights that were being violated, and that pursuing knowledge was inseparable from claiming justice. The Body's Claim to Justice reframes identity formation as a justice issue. It asserts that how you understand and treat your body is not merely personal preference but a question of fundamental rights. Your body has the right to exist without being colonized, controlled, or diminished. It has the right to safety, to develop its capacities, to refuse violation, to take up space. For Body as identity, this concept means recognizing that struggles with self-concept are not individual psychological problems but responses to systemic injustice. When you struggle to feel at home in your body, it may be because systems have told you that body is wrong, dangerous, or undeserving. Reclaiming a positive body-identity becomes an act of asserting bodily justice. This is not about achieving a perfect body but about refusing the premise that your body is accountable to anyone but yourself, and about demanding the conditions necessary for bodily flourishing and self-determination.