USALila Edwards hurriedly ran to hug her mother because the 2-hour visit was the only chance she met each month.

10-year-old Lila often wakes up very early to make the two-hour journey to a prison in the city of Gateville, Texas. Lila had to go through a security scanner before entering the visiting room and was eagerly waiting for the inmate at 01740964. When the woman serving a 40-year sentence for murder came out, Lila rushed over and swooped into the arms of Mom and hug tightly not leave. This visit was the only time in the month of Lila, the fifth-grade student, who met her mother.

"Sometimes I ask my mother, 'Mom, when will you come home?' She always said she would soon and told me to pray to God that. I prayed for her to come home every night," Lila said.

Lila's mother, Lena Acosta, 29, had to go to jail for stabbing her husband's lover when Lila was a toddler, and is expected to be released in 2030. Acosta shared that she regretted acting foolishly. 10 years ago put girls in the current situation. "I was a terrible person," Acosta said.

The number of prisoners in the US has skyrocketed since 1980, in which the number of female prisoners has increased by more than 750%, double that of men. This led to many children in the US to grow up without parents around. It is estimated that at least 5 million American children, about 7%, have parents as prisoners, according to a 2015 federal data-based report.

Children are seriously affected when their parents are prisoners. Many studies show these children face behavioral and psychological problems, lack of sleep and poor nutrition. In addition, the crime rate in this group is higher than in other groups.

Children are often more affected if the mother goes to prison. "Being in jail is the biggest pain for children. It will ruin the life of a family," said Brittany Barnett, founder of Girls Embracing Mothers 6 years ago to help children like Lila have opportunity to visit mother in prison, said.

Texas is the state with the highest number of female prisoners with children in the US, accounting for 80%, according to the Texas Criminal Justice League 2017. more suitable for women prisoners to have opportunities to meet their children. However, according to Jeremy Desel, communications director of the Texas criminal justice agency, children are only allowed to visit their mothers in prison for 2 hours for safety reasons.

A recent morning, the Girls Embracing Mothers bus took 22 children to visit their mother at Linda Woodman Prison in Gateville City. Most of their mothers have been transferred here from a nearby prison.

In order to participate in this visiting program, female prisoners did not violate the discipline for at least 6 months. In addition to monthly visits, female prisoners are also advised on how to engage with their daughters, including how to tell why they were arrested. During the recent visit, female prisoners and their daughters sat down to eat cake and listen to the lecture on building self-esteem.

Malishia Booker, who served 20 years in prison for assaulting a civil servant and other offenses, tried to give her daughter, Jessicah, advice when filling out an application for college financial aid. But it seems all she can do is encourage and encourage her. "I feel useless," said Booker, 46, a mother of seven children and four of whom live together in a Dallas suburb.

Malishia Booker (right) wipes tears for her daughter Jessicah at a prison in Texas. NY Times.

Jessicah, 19, shared with her mother about the siblings' recent controversies and the dark blue dress she was going to wear at the senior party. "Mom was always absent from such important events. But they were just sad and not angry at her anymore," Jessicah said in tears while her 18-year-old sister Ja'Bria, lazily sat on the opposite chair. .

The influence of prison sentences usually follows women prisoners long after their release, from financial hardship to a ruined relationship between mother and child. Karen Keith, 62, who spent 3 years in Texas for failing to pay the US $ 1,200 indemnity for embezzlement, lived a very difficult life after leaving prison in 2015. Keith could not find a home because The landlord rejects the person with the criminal record.

But what made her more painful was being cut off by her family. "I haven't seen my three children and my three grandchildren for six years. They don't want to have anything to do with me anymore," Keith said.

Maggie Luna, 39, a single mother who spent six years in jail for writing a false check, has lost custody of her three children. A Texas judge disqualified Luna's motherhood in 2014 after finding out she used drugs. Unable to hire a lawyer to appeal, she continued serving a drug conviction afterwards.

The youngest daughter was adopted, the 9-year-old son is in a mental institution and the 13-year-old daughter, Delilah, lives with her grandmother. Delillah was in kindergarten when she was first sentenced in 2011. She and her two children spend time with their father, who sometimes takes them to visit his mother. We still remember the painful feeling when we went to the prison to visit our mother.

"The prison staff said I must not touch my mother. We have to sit across from each other. I find it difficult to accept that," Delilah said not allowed to sit on her lap because she was 5 years old.

The most heartbreaking scene was at the end of each visit, when the police took Lula out of the room in the attachment of the children. "My son was crying but I couldn't do anything," Lula, who had been released from prison for two years, recalled.

Texas' foster care and childcare system accepts an additional 20,000 children each year since 2016 by parents in prison, according to the Texas Department of Family Protection and Assistance Services.

"I don't remember the number of times I saw mothers crying because they were deprived of custody of their children. Losing their children is the most expensive price they have to pay for their sins," said Lauren Johnson, who went to jail 3 times for crimes related to drug addiction, said.

Lila doesn't show it out, but not having her mother by her side is a huge loss to her. "The other kids at school all have mothers," said Helen Garcia, 51, a grandmother in Lila. Lila only told her best friend about her mother going to jail last year after years of secrecy.

Before joining the Girls Embracing Mothers program in 2017, Lila had not seen her mother for 3 years. She used to wear a braid when she went to prison to visit her mother, but then often let it go naturally because she wanted to have her hair combed by her mother.

Lila did not miss any visit. Together, the mother and the little girl created souvenirs: a pillow case, a dreamcatcher hanging in Lila's bedroom, and an origami box filled with a piece of paper that encouraged Lila's mother in the room. prison.

For Acosta, the visit is a rare opportunity to get close to me. "It's nice to be able to meet her in person. I can tell her many things, such as how to take care of herself in puberty," Acosta said.

But as Lila grew older, the conversation between mother and child became even more difficult. Acosta had to tell the truth about his prison sentence. "I told her that I had made a bad decision. At this age she can understand. I don't want to lie even if I know she's sad because of that," Acosta said.

The meeting ended at 2pm and the children with teary eyes had to hug their mothers goodbye. "I love you," Acosta whispered into his daughter's ear while they hugged each other before leaving each other for a month later.