Representatives of the AFL-CIO joined the Rev. Damon Lynch and other civil rights leaders Wednesday in support of a jobs program in Cincinnati to train people to work in building trades.

        Supporters say the jobs program, now under funding review by the Cincinnati Empowerment Corp., could go a long way toward healing the racial tensions that contributed to the April riots.

        At an afternoon press conference at the Millennium Hotel downtown, union leaders and members of the A. Phillip Randolph Institute — a national civil rights organization that plans to hold its convention in Cincinnati — stressed the roles poverty and unemployment play in civil unrest.

        Paraphrasing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., AFL-CIO Executive Vice President Linda Chavez-Thompson said: “One of the great causes of racial inequality is economic inequality.”

        In May, the Cincinnati AFL-CIO issued a letter calling for the creation of more stable, full-time jobs that pay a living wage.

        The Rev. Mr. Lynch said he hopes to address economic dispar ities in Cincinnati and improve race relations by offering viable opportunities through the jobs program, called “We are the future.”

        “The real issue ... in Cincinnati is economics,” the Rev. Mr. Lynch said. “You will find that people on the streets want their economic conditions improved. This is an opportunity for real, concrete change.”

        Under the tutelage of a journeyman, participants would learn skills in one of five trades — carpentry, masonry, plumbing, electrical and heating and air conditioning.

        Participants would be paid during training and work on buildings in their own neighborhoods.

        The program also offers high school dropouts the opportunity to earn their GED.

        If funding is approved, the program could be under way by September, the Rev. Mr. Lynch said.

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