Justice as Parental Responsibility

Sor Juana used her intellectual authority to critique injustice: the limitations placed on women, the abuse of power, the suppression of truth. She understood that her parental responsibility extended beyond individual mentees to the larger human community. This concept reframes parenting not as a private family affair but as participation in justice. For contemporary parents, it means raising children aware of systemic injustice and their role in it. For those without children, it suggests that parental identity can be claimed through justice work itself—the protection and advocacy for vulnerable others. For those losing parental status through death or estrangement, justice work offers a channel for continuing parental care: defending those who cannot defend themselves, speaking truth to power, protecting dignity. Sor Juana's life demonstrates that parental identity finds its deepest meaning when oriented toward justice. This reorients parental loss from pure privation to potential redirection toward larger parental responsibilities to humanity itself.