One of the things that's never talked about by those who want to legalize prostitution are the children, the teenagers. You cannot separate the issue of children, the young, in the sex trade, as I've said.
In the early 1970s in Vancouver, I tied up the provincial courts for about a year and a half because I defended almost every prostitute, dozens of them, who came into my office. I've prosecuted them. I also sat as a judge.
In almost every single case I have ever been involved with dealing with prostitutes, as a prosecutor, defence counsel, or a judge, each of those prostitutes began as children. By children, I mean under the age of 18. Any statistics will tell you that most prostitutes begin in their early teens, some as early as 12, 13, 14.
The one thing that those who want to decriminalize never talk about is the age that most begin at. It is in their teens. It's almost a Pretty Woman image, but Richard Gere is not out there waiting. Not all are students earning their way through university. If they began as children, the idea of consent isn't there. You have to talk about the youth.