Before anything else — before the headlong rush into the new year, before lawmakers return to statehouses and Congress, before the crucial fights we know are coming — before any of that, I want to say thank you.

We set an ambitious December fundraising goal, and Planned Parenthood supporters stepped up with truly inspiring generosity. That extraordinary response is a powerful statement of support for sexual and reproductive health care and rights and will fuel our critical work into 2022 and beyond.

The Planned Parenthood community has shown up, time and again, with deep compassion and extraordinary conviction.

You see the inequity in our health care system, and you demand better for Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities, LGBTQ+ people, people with low incomes, and everyone else targeted for discrimination.

You know how important Planned Parenthood health centers are to the communities they serve, and you do your part to keep them thriving.

You understand the serious threats to abortion access, and you confront that danger with unyielding dedication.

I am proud to be a part of this movement and so grateful to have you with us. I know we can count on you to get involved and stay involved in the months ahead.

Later in the term which ends in June, the Supreme Court is expected to rule on Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. This case challenges a Mississippi abortion ban and is being used to directly challenge the constitutional right to abortion. If the Supreme Court majority decides to overturn or unravel Roe v. Wade, it will be a crisis for individual rights and reproductive freedom, unlike anything we have seen in decades.

In the meantime, state lawmakers are racing to pass ever-more punitive restrictions on abortion access. Texans have endured months of injustice and untold hardship because of the S.B. 8 abortion ban. Florida, Ohio, Missouri, and other states may be next now that the Supreme Court has made it clear it won't block laws like S.B. 8 from going into effect.

While these attacks on abortion access unfold, patients still need care. Young people need honest, trustworthy sex education. People need birth control, cancer screenings, STI testing, and treatment. They need a community they can count on to work with them to protect their fundamental right to quality sexual and reproductive health care.

It's important to understand what we are up against. But I know we are not alone. We have you and millions of Planned Parenthood supporters. We are working alongside partner organizations, independent providers, and abortion funds that are also fighting tirelessly to make sure people can get the care they need when they need it. We have activists and organizers, donors and volunteers, champions and allies.

We have what we have always had: a movement. Thank you for being a part of it.

P.S. Didn't have a chance to make your year-end gift to Planned Parenthood? It's not too late: You can still make your gift today to help protect and expand reproductive health care and rights.