It is far from harmless for the prostitute who is often beaten, raped and even killed by her customers or violent street criminals. This is one of the great illusions about a system where pimps and madams use great manipulative cunning and skill to trick, vulnerable, abused adolescents and children from all over the country to begin working the streets. And once, they are out there, the work is anything but victimless. As teenage girls and boys are often subject to severe beatings, constant humiliation and degrading sexually encounters that occur in cars, hallways, shady motels and even on the streets. If that isn't enough, prostitute are often working dangerous streets carrying high amounts of cash during overnight hours when they are at high risk to be mugged, raped and murdered.
Female prostitutes are often gang raped by mobs of teenage boys out for a night of fun.
Most, if not all of the large sums of money earned by street youth are turned over to their pimps. When they arrive home to an apartment or house usually provided by the pimp, they are threatened, battered and even tortured if they haven't met the pimp's quota. And it is important to remember that in most cases all of the money goes directly to the pimp. Juveniles freely choose prostitution or pornography. Juveniles are most frequently driven to prostitution in order to escape abusive situations.