Two U.N. officials have called for the city of Detroit to restore water to residents who cannot afford to pay their bills, saying the city’s mass shutoffs go against human rights standards and hurt its poorest residents. Detroit has shut off water to at least 27,000 households this year as part of a consolidation plan, which residents see as a step toward privatization. Water bills in Detroit cost nearly twice the national average, while the poverty rate is 40 percent. During a visit to Detroit, Catarina de Albuquerque, U.N. special rapporteur on the right to safe drinking water and sanitation, and Leilani Farha, U.N. special rapporteur on adequate housing, met with residents and city officials.

Catarina de Albuquerque: “We met today with the mayor and city officials, and we are aware of measures that have been taken by the city in order to address the affordability, the water affordability issue. We are of the view that such initiatives are insufficient to ensure affordability of water and sanitation and adequate housing.”

Leilani Farha: “We are concerned because African Americans who are living in Detroit and facing water shutoffs are being asked to make impossible choices. Imagine you’re choosing at times to either pay your rent or pay your water bill.”

Two-thirds of households impacted by the water shutoffs are families with children; the children can be taken away by protective services if the house does not have water.