It’s historic, said Abby Louise Jensen. Davin Franklin-Hicks called it a turning point.

When U.S. Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch announced the federal government’s intention to challenge North Carolina’s discriminatory law against transgender people, she made it clear about who would be on the right side — and the wrong side — of history.

“We see you,” Lynch said to Jensen and Franklin-Hicks and all other transgender individuals who have spent years battling for equal civil rights and to maintain their sexual identity and expression.

Lynch, who was born in North Carolina and cited Jim Crow laws and efforts to disarm desegregation laws in previous years, added: “We stand with you; and we will do everything we can to protect you going forward. Please know that history is on your side.”

Indeed, the march of history is on the side of a group of people who have been marginalized and, in many cases, live in fear and isolation.

“It’s absolutely mind-blowing. We’re not used to the government supporting us,” said Jensen, an appellate attorney for the Pima County public defender.