The Right to Intellectual Authorship

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz fought fiercely for recognition as an intellectual creator in a society that denied women authorship. This concept examines how identity is inseparable from the right to claim one's thoughts, words, and discoveries. Across cultures, naming conventions, publication systems, and institutional structures have systematically erased marginalized voices from the record of ideas. When we consider name and identity across cultures, we must ask: who gets credited? Whose intellectual labor is visible? Sor Juana's legacy teaches that reclaiming authorship is an act of justice and self-definition. It means insisting that one's name appears alongside one's contributions, that translation does not erase origin, and that intellectual identity transcends the boundaries imposed by gender, race, or cultural origin. This right forms the foundation for how individuals define themselves through knowledge creation.