The Economics of Epistemic Injustice

Sor Juana faced constant dismissal not because her ideas lacked merit but because she was a woman, a colonial subject, and eventually a challenge to ecclesiastical authority. Epistemic injustice—denial of credibility—is an economic harm: it bars individuals from participating in knowledge markets, from gaining influence, from translating intelligence into opportunity. In libertarian analysis, this is a form of market manipulation and fraud—the systematic discounting of a person's intellectual contributions based on prejudice rather than evidence. This injustice compounds property deprivation: Sor Juana's brilliant work circulated under constraints, her authorship questioned, her contributions absorbed into institutional prestige rather than personal advancement. For libertarian justice, addressing epistemic injustice means removing artificial credibility barriers and allowing merit to determine influence. This requires not charity but genuine open competition—ending enforced deference to authority and allowing individuals to demonstrate competence and claim recognition. Only then can knowledge-producers freely exchange their intellectual property for deserved reward and standing.