The author argues that by changing the discourse about youth prostitution to an issue of child protection, policies become framed in terms of the welfare needs of children, which are not adequate to address the needs of the youth involved in prostitution. The reconfiguring of a “young woman” to be an “abused child” is justified on the grounds that those under the age of 16 years old cannot give consent to sexual intercourse. The construction of prostitution as “child sexual abuse,” however, now means socioeconomic factors related to a youth’s involvement in prostitution are obscured or overlooked. It matters that those between the ages of 13 and 18 years old be viewed as “young people” rather than “children,” since being termed a “child” implies having welfare and dependency needs. Being a youth, on the other hand, has a different set of issues that pertain to the social, economic, cultural, and political context in which youth are developing their identity and taking responsibility for their well-being. Some youth are involved in prostitution because of coercion and sexual violence; however, it is important not to overlook other reasons for involvement in prostitution, including failures in state welfare policy. Britain’s Children Act 1989 has removed eligibility for income support from most 16-year-olds and 17-year-olds at a time when the youth labor market has declined. The contradictions in “promoting and safeguarding welfare” for the same group for whom the welfare “safety net” has been removed cannot be overstated. 6 notes and 41 references