Epistemic Justice and the Right to Know

Sor Juana's era systematically denied women access to formal education, libraries, and intellectual communities—restricting not just opportunity but the very right to pursue knowledge. Her self-education through reading, observation, and correspondence represents a claim on epistemic justice: the right to develop ideas, be taken seriously as a thinker, and participate in knowledge creation. This concept recognizes that oppressive systems do not simply limit individual access but control who is deemed capable of knowing and whose knowledge counts. In intersectional practice, epistemic justice means identifying where your right to know has been restricted, actively seeking knowledge that systems tried to withhold, and creating spaces where those denied epistemic authority can think and speak.