NEW YORK, NY May 02, 2008 —Reverend Jesse Jackson joined City Council members to ask New Yorkers to send aid to Haitians who can't afford the food they need. Jackson also met with local congress members to push for longer term solutions to Haiti's crisis.

REPORTER: Jesse Jackson just returned from three days in Haiti and he said preventing famine there is a moral imperative, but it's also an issue of Homeland Security.

JACKSON: In their desperation they can be manipulated and exploited.

REPORTER: Right now, Jackson said, Haitians need rice, wheat, cooking oil and water. But in the long term, they need American legislators to act. Jackson is trying to focus public attention on what Haiti's President Rene Preval says he needs: help combating the drug trade, debt relief, temporary legal visas for undocumented Haitian immigrants. Haiti depends on the money they send back.

Advocates for Haiti have been pushing for similar measures for years with little success. Congressman Charles Rangel is trying to insert into the current farm bill a measure to give Haitians greater access to the textile market. Critics say he's adding a layer of controversy to a bill already at risk of failing.

For WNYC, I'm Marianne McCune.

City Council member Mathieu Eugene is organizing a citywide food drive for Haitians with drop off sites at five Brooklyn schools.