SAN DIEGO (KGTV) – The allegations of childcare fraud and impacts to the Somali community are trickling down to the San Diego community.
“I laugh at the notion that there's widespread fraud in our childcare system,” Christopher Wilson, Chief Strategy & Impact Officer for United Domestic Workers, said. “There are many checks and balances, many checks and corrections that are made every year.”
Local childcare providers, parents, and elected officials are standing together in support of those feeling the backlash of what’s happening in Minnesota.
A rally on Thursday follows a viral video out of Minnesota accusing Somali-run childcare centers of fraudulently taking federal funding. The claims from the video are that the childcare centers didn't actually have any children.
"We will not tolerate any harassment or violations of the constitutional rights of any of our community members,” Ramla Sahid, a speaker at the rally, said.
Community members said that the viral video is having an impact here in San Diego.
"In the beginning, I was seeing the news a lot, what's what was going on, but I never thought about it; they coming here in California,” Samsam Khalif, Childcare Provider
Samsam Khalif's been providing childcare here in San Diego for nearly 20 years. She told ABC 10News two days ago that she saw two young men in a car parked near her home daycare with a camera.
"That makes me scared even to go into my house, and I was driving away and away 2 times. After two times, the third time I just get in. When they saw me that I'm having kids maybe then they just left because they were thinking like I have a license and I'm not doing any children in that care,” Khalif said.
ABC 10News asked Wilson if there have been any formal complaints of alleged fraud happening in San Diego County.
"We have seen some social media or digital influencers making claims. I think they're just riding on the coattails of what's happening in other parts of the country,” Wilson said. "The idea or the notion that there's widespread fraud in San Diego is just baseless, at utterance."
We also asked the Governor's office if they'd follow several other states and ensure there is no fraud in California. The Office sent the following statement:
The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) administers child care and other essential programs that allow working families to afford safe, reliable care so parents can go to work, support their families, and contribute to their communities. These funds are not optional — they are critical lifelines for working families across California.
The State of California aggressively investigates and prosecutes fraud. Using unsupported allegations to withhold child care funding only from states that didn’t vote for the President doesn’t stop fraud — it harms struggling moms and dads President Trump claims to be fighting for.
The CDSS received the attached letters from the federal government.
In the meantime, Wilson said this when asked about people making alleged fraud claims and what action UDW would take.
"I won't speak to our strategy moving forward, but I will say that people make baseless claims every day, and they have a right to because we have the First Amendment,” Wilson said. “But that's not going to change our direction or our path in protecting our workers."
