“That day was the defining moment of my life. I was in my junior year of high school. And I used to remember the date. … And I feel really bad about not knowing the date any more. The police showed up early in the morning. And my dad asked the policemen what they wanted. And they said, ‘You’re under arrest.’ And my dad said, ‘OK.’ I think he just hugged me and he said something like, ‘I hope I’ll be back soon.’ The policemen didn’t say anything to me. They just left me there by myself.”
1 in 28 children have a parent in jail. There are now enough children with incarcerated parents that “Sesame Street” has an entire toolkit to help them cope.