The daughter of the real-life “American Gangster,” Frank Lucas, kept her identity hidden for 30 years. But, after the release of the movie, Francine Lucas-Sinclair decided to come forward to become a voice for kids of incarcerated parents. She spoke to Crimejunkies about her new organization, “Yellow Brick Roads.”

WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO CREATE "YELLOW BRICK ROADS?"

I became aware how big the problem was and decided there needs to be a unified approach to the kids with parents incarcerated. There needs to be a national organization who would approach the problem in a cohesive way. There are small organizations here and there but limited to geographical area. My focus is on the children. There needs to be a strong national organization.

WHAT TYPES OF RESOURCES ARE NEEDED TO SUPPORT KIDS WITH INCARCERATED PARENTS?

"Yellow Brick Roads" will be an after-school program where these kids can go. They will receive a warm meal and assistance with their homework. They will be encouraged to become involved with extracurricular activitIes, sports, anything they want to fulfill. Financial literacy will be a focus as an important life skill since schools don't offer it. We will help support these kids if they want to bond with their parents and will drive them to the prison. We will sponsor a yearly trip if the prison is not in the area. These kids had a bond with their parents and do not see the criminal side of them. It traumatizes them to be cut off from their parents all of a sudden, no matter what their crime. We really can't rehabilitate if we are cutting them off from their families. As the organization builds strength, we will offer scholarships. We received a lot of emails from parents who were in jail and could not save for college. For most people, it has not even occurred to them about kids of incarcerated parents. I was a child of incarcerated parents and know from a personal experience what these kids need.

IF SOMEONE IS INTERESTED IN SUPPORTING YOUR ORGANIZATION, HOW CAN THEY GET INVOLVED?

What they need to do is go to yellowbrickroads.org and donate. If everyone could donate five dollars and five minutes of their time and encourage friends and family to do the same. Most people don't donate because they think they need to donate $100. Work one hour overtime and send in that money. We are working on opening up the first chapter in Atlanta in four months.

WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE FOR YOU WHEN YOUR PARENTS WERE BEHIND BARS?

There was shame associated with it and the stigma. You don't want to talk to others about it because you don't want to be labeled. Kids with incarcerated parents are invisible because they don't want to talk about it. I seized the opportunity to take advantage to bring spotlight to the issue.

DID YOU HAVE ANYONE THAT SUPPORTED YOU WHILE YOUR PARENTS WERE AWAY?

My grandparents took care of me but outside no because no one knew about my situation. I joined Girl Scouts but no one knew about it. It was very hurtful to see the other girls' mothers involved. It would have been good if I was in Yellow Brick Roads with other kids in my situation. I wish there would have been a place like that, but I settled for the Girl Scouts. It helped me but was difficult to see the other moms.

HOW MANY KIDS HAVE INCARCERATED PARENTS IN THE U.S.?

Two and a half million have one parent in prison. Ten million kids have parents in prison, jail probation or parole. It's growing because more and more people are going to prison. Laws are getting stronger. I believe two-thirds of people going to prison are locked up for non-violent crimes. My parents would have been sent away for life if it happened now. Most people going to prison are parents. There is a way to help these kids and minimize the pain they are going through, such as post traumatic stress, hyper awareness and sleeping disorders. As a society, we are not aware and are not doing anything.

IS THERE CURRENTLY ANY SUPPORT SYSTEM AVAILABLE?

On my resources page, I have by state what I have been able to find. Some states have nothing. There is a great one in San Francisco but if you live in LA, you cannot get there. I've gathered what people have been emailing me. That is the problem- there is not one place like the Boys and Girls Club. They have a mentor program available, and they are there to listen to you and provide an example. Problem with that is that mentors promise a two year commitment but then leave. They start to get attached and they up and leave. I don't believe this is a solution. At Yellow Brick Roads, they will find their mentoring but there will be no such thing as taking to a ball game. There will be a more holistic approach.

WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO COME FORWARD NOW AND SPEAK OUT?

For some reason, it just hit me in the head one day- children of incarcerated parents. I thought I was just one of a few people. I went to Google and did research and contacted a couple organizations. One lady was a freelance writer for Glamour Magazine and tried to do a story on this, but it was rejected because it didn't have enough appeal. When she found that I was related to Frank Lucas and had both parents incarcerated, she thought it was a perfect opportunity to tell my story. I didn't share my story for 30 years because I didn't feel a reason to but thought this was a good reason. I had cold feet and was not crazy about the whole world knowing my life. I started to get emails from all over the country and the world. Originally Yellow Brick Roads was going to be a website to show resources available. But people thought it was going to be an organization and thanked me for coming forward because they thought they were alone. I was hoping that my story would propel someone to do something about it. But thought it may never happen if waiting for someone else so I got things together. I got myself a manager and together we are working on this thing to make it happen.

AND, FINALLY, WERE YOU PLEASED WITH "AMERICAN GANGSTER?"

I thought it was a great movie. I really liked it. I thought it was pretty accurate. I thought it glorified the lifestyle of my father back then. In Hollywood, they are only concerned about making money. People are saying that they want to be just like my dad. Any character that Denzel Washington plays is well-liked no matter what. I think it glorified but good things came out of it like Yellow Brick Roads, which is worth more than any movie they could have made.

For further information, please visit, “www.yellowbrickroads.org”