Two United Nations officials are in Detroit for a fact-finding mission over the city’s shutting off of water to thousands of residents. The city began cutting off water taps to thousands of households earlier this year, prompting protests and an appeal to the United Nations for help. Detroit activist Maureen Taylor said the visit by U.N. special rapporteurs could help bring the issue before an international court.

Maureen Taylor: “The fact that they were able to come here is not only a miraculous thing but something that we’re quite surprised at. The goal is to have them to look further at the practice of shutting water off to help us determine whether or not these are in fact violations of international law and then to move this fight forward into perhaps an international court.”

The two U.N. rapporteurs are expected to meet with city officials today. Detroit’s poverty rate is 40 percent, with a population that is 80 percent African-American. Two-thirds of those impacted by the water shutoffs involve families with children.