Last week, when I still had this amazing energy from participating in the Women’s March in Augusta, a friend said to me, “I don’t get it. What was the point?” And I realized I needed to say more to people in my community about why this event — and what comes next — is so important.

In part, it’s the power that comes from numbers. Besides the thousands of us who showed up in Augusta, and the many more who marched here in Brunswick, Portland and all around the world, the Women’s Marches amounted to something like four million people. I saw hundreds of different signs representing many points of view, from those fighting for immigrants to those defending LGBTQ rights. I can only speak for myself, and my sign read: I stand with Planned Parenthood. For me, my march is about standing up for reproductive rights of women.

Planned Parenthood has been providing valuable information and services for reproductive health for more than 100 years. I first learned about Planned Parenthood from my late mom, a nurse practitioner who spent much of her career making sure women had access to affordable medical care, reliable birth control and the freedom to choose when they wanted to have children. Her belief —that “every child should be a wanted child” — was something she shared at work, in her community and with her four daughters. It’s a value I’ve passed on to my own children, and I’m astounded — and frightened — at how quickly Congress and the new President are moving to take those rights away.

In taking steps to repeal the Affordable Care Act, besides taking health coverage away from 30 million people, Congress will also take away the no-copay preventive care that includes birth control, a move that will affect 55 million women. And congressional leaders are trying to defund Planned Parenthood, which provides health care for 2.5 million people around the country. Many of them are in our community— our sisters, daughters and neighbors who rely on the Planned Parenthood health center in Topsham.

What’s so frustrating about the threat to defund Planned Parenthood is that right now, the U.S. abortion rate is at the lowest its ever been since 1973, when Roe v. Wade made abortion legal, according to a new report from the Guttmacher Institute. That proves that family planning and helping women take care of their reproductive health works. Teen pregnancy is also at a record low, as is the rate of unintended pregnancy. Cutting access to reproductive healthcare would be a terrible step backward. Planned Parenthood isn’t a problem — it’s a solution.

The march reminded me that I’m not just one voice, hoping to protect the reproductive rights of my daughter’s generation. I’m one of millions. And I’m lucky enough to live in a country where I can use that voice, and let my elected representatives know how important reproductive health is — in Maine, throughout America, and around the world.

I’ve called Sen. Susan Collins’ office and told her my views, and also thanked her for continued support of Planned Parenthood. I hope others will do so, too. Her office estimates that without Planned Parenthood providing health services that include cancer screenings, birth control, and STD testing and treatment, other family-planning centers would see a 63 percent surge in case load, which they cannot handle.

This would leave thousands of Maine women without care. I will not sit by quietly and let that happen, and I hope others will get loud with me, too.

And I hope people will begin to understand that any effort to defund Planned Parenthood is not about abortion. While abortions are an important part of what Planned Parenthood offers, it is only a small part. No portion of federal funding pays for those abortions. The Hyde Amendment, in place since 1976, prohibits the use of federal funds for abortions (except in cases of rape or incest.) So taking funding away from Planned Parenthood will just cut women off from important healthcare, from PAP tests to well-woman checkups.

This kind of healthcare is private, not political. And it should be between women, men and their healthcare providers — not members of Congress. If you support women’s healthcare, I hope you will raise your voice too. While abortion can be a divisive issue, basic health care and access to birth control are not. Let’s stand together in supporting women of all income levels getting the care they deserve.

Sarah Mahoney lives in Arrowsic.