Progress in the area of civil rights attained under the Carter administration is described in this speech by the current United States Attorney General. Among the Federal activities mentioned are: (1) legal suits to end employment discrimination on the basis of race, sex, and national origin; (2) withholding of Federal funds from State and local governments that do not comply with Federal legislation; (3) consolidation of the education and housing sections of the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department; (4) pursuit of school desegregation in the West, Midwest and Northeast, as well as in the South; (5) actions taken on the part of institutionalized persons and persons victimized by official wrongdoing; (6) actions taken under the Voting Rights Act to increase minority elected representation; and (7) litigation initiated to end the denial of free public education to the children of undocumented aliens. Activities undertaken within the Justice Department, including the establishment of regional offices, the appointment of Federal judges, and internal employment policies, are also briefly described. (GC)