The FBI rescued 600 children from sexual exploitation last year, but experts say these success stories are simply a fraction of the sex abuse actually taking place. Experts say tens of thousands of American children are being sexually exploited annually.

Many women who have escaped the world of prostitution say the younger the workers are, the more they make. Girls are drawn into the lifestyle by boyfriends, neighbors and family members. Many are or become addicted to drugs. They’re abused. Before long, it seems to them there’s no way out of the situation.

One woman, who’s now escaped the world of prostitution, says she was groomed by a neighbor when she was 12 years old.

“I see more and more younger girls out there now, and it’s really sad,” she says. “It’s not a choice. At 12, it was not a choice.” (BBC)