A group of Canadians took 1,000 litres of water across the border to Detroit, where thousands of residents have had their water shut off over unpaid bills.

Doug Hayes of the Windsor-Essex chapter of the Council of Canadians told CTV’s Canada AM Thursday that the group wanted to help desperate Detroiters who have no money to pay the outstanding bills.

Detroit’s utility company has shut off water to more than 7,000 homes and businesses since March. The shut-offs were paused on Monday for 15 days to give residents some time to come up with the money, but Hayes said the payments are out of reach for many Detroit residents.

He said water rates have gone up, while many Detroiters are still unemployed or living below the poverty line.

The utility company has said that past due accounts across the city amount to nearly $90 million. The average household owes roughly $540.

The national chair of the Council of Canadians, Maude Barlow, told CTV Windsor Thursday that the goal is to show Detroiters that Canadians care about them.

When we discuss the lack of access to water, we tend to think of poor, developing countries that are “far away,” Barlow said. But this is happening to a neighbour, just a short drive across the border from Windsor, Ont.

“It’s a health emergency, it’s a housing emergency,” Barlow said. “It’s a child emergency because technically, if you don’t have essential services, they’re not supposed to leave the children in the home.”

The Canadian group took 50 jugs of water across the border to an emergency water drop-off in the city and then joined a rally in downtown Detroit.

By late Thursday afternoon, about 100 people had joined the rally, carrying signs that read: “Water is life! Shutoffs are murder!" among others.

PETA's offer sparks outrage

While various groups are trying to assist Detroiters without running water, one international organization was taking heat Thursday for its eyebrow-raising offer of help.

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, is offering to pay off outstanding water bills for 10 Detroit families if they commit to going vegan for one month.

In a blog post, PETA said it will help get those families started by sending them a basket of “healthy vegan foods and recipes.”

That did not go over well on Twitter, where users accused PETA of “extortion charity.” Many pointed out that Detroiters who can’t afford to pay their water bills also can’t financially sustain a vegan diet.