Identity as Inalienable Property

Sor Juana lived at the intersection of multiple forced identities: woman, colonial subject, nun, indigenous heritage. Her life's work was asserting her true self against imposed categories. In libertarian justice, identity operates as inalienable property—the most basic claim an individual holds. Others cannot force you into false identities, deny your self-understanding, or compel you to conform to assigned roles, because doing so violates your property in yourself. Sor Juana's struggle against being treated merely as 'a woman who should obey' or 'a nun who should be silent' demonstrates identity as a freedom claim. Applied today, this framework protects against forced gender assignment, caste systems, racial categorization without consent, and institutional erasure of selfhood. Justice requires recognizing individuals as owners of their own identities, not objects shaped by others' definitions.