Suzan Johnson Cook defends her work on religious freedom and explains why she left

Lauren Markoe

WASHINGTON (RNS) Suzan Johnson Cook, who resigned this month as U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom, said she left for one central reason: She wants to earn more money in the private sector so she can give her sons the gift of a “debt-free college education.”

Johnson Cook served almost 30 months, and was the first African-American, woman, and pastor to hold the job. Though many praise her, she also leaves amid criticism that she failed to stand up for some of the world’s most persecuted victims of religious oppression.

Others question how much power the ambassador for religious freedom actually wields.

In an interview, Johnson Cook said that she left to safeguard her sons’ futures. One, 18, is a freshman at Princeton University, the other, 21, a senior at Johns Hopkins University who plans to be an orthopedic surgeon.

Read more at http://www.religionnews.com/2013/10/28/suzan-johnson-cook-defends-work-religious-freedom-explains-left/