Fighting fraud strengthens my community—it does not harm it. Ignoring it, or worse, defending it, only deepens the damage. Yet in Maine, we are increasingly seeing people in positions of influence frame legitimate concerns about fraud as political attacks, rather than confronting the problem honestly. I say this not as an outsider, but as someone deeply rooted in both my Somali heritage and my life here in Maine. I am a proud naturalized Somali American. I have worked as a translator, a columnist, and within the nonprofit sector. I have seen firsthand how these systems are supposed to serve vulnerable…