Gender as Artificial Property Restriction

Sor Juana was denied university education, certain intellectual pursuits, and public intellectual authority not because of incapacity but because of gender. In libertarian terms, this is an arbitrary property restriction: denying access to opportunities, knowledge, and social participation based on an unchosen characteristic. Gender restrictions operate similarly to other unjust monopolies—they protect incumbent interests (male intellectual authority) against competition and consolidate power by eliminating rivals. Sor Juana's extraordinary talents, wasted or constrained by gender prohibition, represent lost human potential and economic inefficiency driven by prejudice rather than principle. Libertarian justice requires examining all restrictions on property rights and freedom through the lens of necessity: Is this restriction preventing harm to others, or merely protecting privilege? Gender restrictions fail this test. They prevent willing individuals from participating in markets, exercising skills, and pursuing their interests. Removing these restrictions isn't charity; it's justice. It expands the pool of intellectual contributors, eliminates artificial scarcity, and allows property rights in human capability to align with actual capacity rather than prejudicial assumption.