The Care Economy Organizing (CEO) Project unequivocally condemns the fear, intimidation, and threats targeting child care providers and immigrant communities in Ohio. Political extremists and bad-faith actors are deliberately stoking panic and hostility, placing families, small business owners, and the workforce that protects our children at risk. This behavior is dangerous, destabilizing, and has no place in Ohio or in our democracy. 

We specifically denounce the actions and rhetoric of self-described “investigators”, who are targeting publicly funded child care centers. This misinformation and intimidation threatens the safety of Ohioans. These tactics, rooted in xenophobia and political opportunism, are designed to terrorize the community, not uncover the truth. 

The facts are clear. More than 100,000 Ohio children rely on state-subsidized child care each year, with about 116,000 families using the service on average per month. Care is delivered through 5,200 licensed centers statewide. Ohio’s child care system is among the most heavily regulated in the country, with rigorous licensing requirements, unannounced inspections, audits, and ongoing compliance monitoring. Ohio is not the wild west.

Child care funding is so scarce in Ohio that if fraud exists, we want it to be discovered. 

Targeting providers through fear-based lies endangers children, undermines small businesses, and destabilizes the workforce families depend on. Children deserve to be safe, at daycare, at school, in places of worship, and in their homes. So do the educators and caregivers who serve them. 

CEO stands with Ohio’s child care providers and families, rejects racist and extremist disinformation.