I don't know that I believe the stat's the Dept of Justice came up with that were quoted in this article:

"According to the Department of Justice, the average age at which girls enter prostitution in the United States is 13. Seventy-five to 80 percent of prostituted women were sexually abused before age 18, according to a 2004 study."

But, if Breaking Free helps the pimped and physically and emotionally abused women and children that are prostituted, then I applaud their efforts.  

I do not know enough about them to really know.
I did think it was an interesting article though.

You are correct bb, very interesting article. Thanks for posting it. I think the stat refers to street walkers only, which would make it a bit more believable, but I have seen that when authorities or prostitution opponents speak on the issue, they often feel compelled to find some way to tie in references to underaged girls or trafficking, to bolster people's disdain for prostitution. Their goal is never organized or regulated prostitution or to eliminate the pimps. Their goal is always to completely eliminate prostitution. So they always find some way to include underaged activity and lump all prostitution under the same banner, ignoring that for probably a far more overwhelming number of women, there are no pimps involved, no streets, and if there is any exploitation, it's done almost entirely on their terms.

But prostitution opponents would prefer to slit their wrists before acknowledging that.

I agree, breakingfree's intent should be applauded. Usually streetwalkers have no one that gives a shit about them. Still, I don't think for a second that some federally funded program is ever going to make a dent in prostitution.

It never fails to amaze me what these women actually go thru every night. Can you imagine as we all sit around our computers tonight, in our warm and cozy homes, that there are hundreds if not thousands of women around the country standing on cold and lonely street corners, some in utterly desolate areas, completely alone, waiting and waiting for some total stranger to drive up and take them someplace, to perform the most intimate of all acts, usually in absolute degradation. All for perhaps $40 or $50?

Would it satisfy me if these women were taken off the streets and placed in comfortable apartments, able to screen and accept or reject their callers, free from the humiliation of pimps? Can the act of purchasing sex ever be free for both sides from feelings of shame and degradation? Is it possible to have a healthy and truly beneficial outlook on selling or paying for companionship?

I will be totally honest and admit that as I grow older, despite my attraction to the board and adult entertainment, despite my belief in freedom of expression and freedom to assemble, despite my addiction to beautiful women, it becomes more and more difficult to say yes.

Breaking Free is a wonderful organization... for the demographic that they represent. My understanding is that most of the women who work and volunteer for Breaking Free have come out of a life of street prostitution, abuse, and pimping. They do a lot of really great work locally helping women and children who are REAL  victims of sex trafficking, and women who are trapped in social & economic circumstances that have given them no other options.

But -- just like it's hard for me to comprehend what it would be like to be a street worker or someone who is forced into it -- I think they do have a hard time accepting that there are women, like us, who have happily and voluntarily made the choice to enter this field.

I do wish our city had a safe & nonjudgmental place for sex workers (of all kinds) to go for healthcare, legal aid, counseling services, and the like. Even those of us who are happy in our jobs could use a bit of compassionate support and assistance sometimes!

And yes, I'm sure those statistics are very skewed... it would be almost impossible to get a reading on the "average age" of prostitutes in this country. It's not exactly the kind of question the Census Bureau asks every 10 years!

My 2 questions are: 1, if the average age of women entering prostitution in the US is 13, doesn't mean that there some entering prostitution.......under 13??!?

where the hell are these 14 year old hookers that the writer see when breakingfree's volunteers go out to Lake Street??

I been to Lake Street many many times, although not recently, but I've been there plenty of late nights (uh, on investigative purposes only) when the real freaks come out and I cannot ever recall even once, where I saw a girl who looked 14.
Most of the women there are hard, desperate and broken down. It would be an extraordinarily bold 14 yr old girl who would have the nerve to venture out to Lake Street at 2-3am in the morning.

I would bet strongly that the writer has probably never been to Lake Street at night and this is one of those stories where quotes are made and stats are thrown out with impunity, devoid of any reality.