Quote:

Those friendly, fuzzy Muppets from “Sesame Street” have helped kids open up about all sorts of serious subjects, from hunger and divorce to military deployment.

But they’re now tackling a much more unexpected issue: incarceration.

Meet Alex, the first Muppet to have a dad in jail. According to a Pew Charitable Trusts report, one in 28 children in the United States now has a parent behind bars -- more than the number of kids with a parent who is deployed -- so it’s a real issue, but it’s talked about far less because of the stigma.

That’s why the Sesame Workshop says it created the “Little Children, Big Challenges: Incarceration” initiative, an online tool kit intended to help kids with a parent in prison find support and comfort, and provide families with strategies and tips to talk to their children about incarceration.

Alex is blue-haired and green-nosed and he wears a hoodie – you might think he’s just another carefree inhabitant of Sesame Street. But there’s sorrow in Alex’s voice when he talks about his father.

“I just miss him so much,” he tells a friend. “I usually don’t want people to know about my Dad.”

It’s easier for kids to hear such things from a Muppet than an adult, creators of the initiative noted.

“Coming from a Muppet, it’s almost another child telling their story to the children,” said Jeanette Betancourt, vice president of outreach and educational practices at the Sesame Workshop.

Alex will not be part of the regular cast on “Sesame Street,” but he’s playing a central role in the online tool kit.

Children of parents behind bars often feel sadness, shame and guilt about the situation, so they need to know they are loved and that the incarceration is not their fault, said Carol Burton, executive director of Centerforce, a non-profit dedicated to supporting families impacted by incarceration.

“There are several million children impacted by incarceration in this country,” Burton said. “No one is paying attention to them.”

The project and its unusual subject matter have garnered a lot of attention, with some observers calling it a sign of the times.

"Congratulations, America, on making it almost normal to have a parent in prison or jail," wrote a columnist on Reason.com

---

Source.

wow he's even wearing a hoodie.

fapjack said:

I don't really see how that's funny, its a fucked up issue a lot of children have to face.

---

Shroomopotamus said:

Sesame Streeter's aint muppets, muppets are muppets.

---

Quote:

The Muppets were created in the 1950s, beginning with Kermit the Frog, who would become Jim Henson's signature character. Jim Henson said the word "Muppet" predated Sam and Friends, the first television program featuring the Muppets. Oftentimes, Henson would tell people the term had been created by combining the words "marionette" and "puppet", but also claimed that it was actually a word he had coined.[11] During the 1960s, the characters (notably Kermit and Rowlf the Dog) appeared on skits in several late night talk shows and advertising commercials. After the debut of Sesame Street in 1969 (for which Henson designed and performed several characters), Henson decided to pursue the creation of a television program that would be aimed towards adults and children. By 1976, The Muppet Show, a sketch comedy variety series debuted, introducing new characters such as Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, The Great Gonzo and Animal, as well as showcasing regulars Kermit and Rowlf. The Muppet Show became increasingly popular due to its unique brand of humor and prolific roster of guest stars. The show's success allowed Henson Associates to produce three theatrical features based on the group; The Muppet Movie, The Great Muppet Caper and The Muppets Take Manhattan that followed in 1979, 1981 and 1984, respectively.

---

nicechrisman said:

The rate of incarceration in this country is appalling

---

abltsandwich said:

wow he's even wearing a hoodie.

---

we can fix that

badchad said:

I wonder what his parent is in jail for?

I bet they let us know in the Sesame Street season finale.

---