Dear Editor: I write in response to T. Jones who demeaned the tenants of Hoboken Housing Authority last week in what can only be classified as ignorance at its very worst. It is apparent T. Jones has never been in any of the homes of the people he has judged so distastefully. If Jones knew the people he speaks so poorly of he would find his inflammatory letter filled with nothing more than empty rhetoric. Many HHA families are like families anywhere today. They work long hours and struggle to pay rents that are relatively high. For example, some families pay rents that exceed over $1,000 a month. The HHA is the only place in Hoboken these days where low income families can afford to live, but that does not mean that they should live in sub-human conditions. The HHA residents are rising up against injustices that we, as American citizens, would never personally tolerate ourselves. They are frustrated and rightfully so. For example, the bathrooms of many families are unfinished with nothing more than plywood on the walls. Many of the elevators have gone without repairs and rodents run rampant. The HHA management has had trailers parked on several streets for months now throughout the complex further denying Hoboken of desperately needed parking spaces. What does this mean for the average Hobokenite living downtown? It means parking spaces that once existed are needlessly being wasted by trailers. These are serious public health and quality of life issues that should never be ignored in any corner of this town. In addition, the residents have been presented with a lease that if all the residents of Hoboken were told to sign it, a massive lawsuit would result against landlords everywhere. They have a legitimate grievance against their landlord and deserve to be heard. I need not remind Jones that even in Hoboken’s most luxurious housing, the government plays a key role in all of our existences. Government ensures sanitary and healthy standards for decent living. The HHA was never in such a poor state of condition as it stands today. That, in essence, is their grievance-the fact that they are made to live in unsafe and unsanitary conditions denying them any form of decency whatsoever. T. Jones may not like hearing what the HHA residents are bringing to our attention. Thankfully, the Constitution of this great Republic affords them the same guarantees that Mr. Jones enjoys without regard to their personal wealth. And why is it that it may bother Jones so much? Well, it could very well possibly be that it forces our consciousness as Americans to rethink the very principles we speak so fondly of as a nation. We claim to held dear to our hearts the spirit of fighting injustices wherever they may exist. Why is it that if we see a country in turmoil or suffering from rampant famine we deem it our American duty to aid these foreign countries when so many of these same fundamental questions linger in our very own backyards? Bulldozing people from their homes whenever we are unable to find a real solution to human problems is not the solution. We, as Americans, want to help uplift our fellow citizens. If T. Jones had his way, however, he would bulldoze countless lives, homes and children on the mere premise that they note an objection. This is not what America is about. “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally , and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” James 1:5. I quote from the Book of James because I extend to T. Jones and anyone who may not understand the plight of the HHA residents, an open invitation to personally tour the homes of the people with me. I think you will find it both surprising and informative to meet these families; hear and see for yourself their personal experiences. They will not only welcome you into their homes, but they will also share with you the little resources they have. That’s just the type of people they are-neither selfish or mean-spirited, just simply poor. George A. Ortiz