Epistemic Justice and Speaking Truth

Sor Juana's work was repeatedly dismissed or interpreted through the lens of her interrogators' assumptions, yet she persisted in asserting her own understanding of theology, philosophy, and experience. Epistemic justice—the right to be recognized as a knower—carries corresponding responsibilities: to listen across difference, to question our dismissals, and to create conditions where excluded voices can speak. In Responsibilities—the other side of rights, this concept acknowledges that granting someone the right to speak demands the listener's responsibility to hear. Sor Juana demonstrated that those historically excluded from knowledge-making bear special responsibility to articulate their perspective clearly and rigorously, precisely because they will face skepticism. Simultaneously, those who monopolized knowledge-making bear responsibility to examine how their authority silenced others. Justice requires redistributing both epistemic rights and the burdens of proof, recognizing that marginalized knowledge is not automatically valid but deserves genuine consideration.