Marie Harrison: Living and working in her community

Marie Harrison’s roots in Hunters Point and environmental activism run deep, and helps connect everyone on the Quesada Gardens block in Bayview to a better understanding of the challenges neighbors face just up “the hill.”

Marie has lived at the Quesada Gardens for years now - working hard with husband Na’im, daughter Arieanne, and grandchildren Giovanni and Roman – to build a better life for family and community. Always in motion, she can be seen racing from home to public hearing to community meeting…and her day might just be getting started.

Marie combines the personal and political. In fact, she would have a tough time separating them. Her work to address environmental and public health concerns through grassroots strategies is as much a part of her as her personal connections with people struggling with life-threatening illness. She always finds the time to talk with the people she sees, and will share the latest news and most current statistics about the issues that have shaped her life and work.

Marie brings a sense of urgency to her work, whether that work is as a community organizer, candidate for office, writer or speaker. As an African American woman, proud Bayview Hunters Point resident, and loving matriarch of the Harrison family, she brings warmth and personality to all she does.

Bayview Footprints salutes Marie as an involved community-member, good neighbor, and tireless advocate for the causes she champions.

See the new "Beyond Toxicity: A Project by Storm" video

Marie wants you to know about this new video which personalizes the experience of Hunters Point community members. The video begins with the refrain, “I’m still here,” and shares the stories of breast cancer survivors who live near the Superfund Site at the Shipyard.

From this new work...

“It's a civil right that you are allowed to heal, and live in a safe and clean environment.” Sharone Greenpeace, breast cancer survivor and one-time Hunters Point resident

"I cried...shut off, closed up, stopped talking to people for awhile." Shelia Cole, breast cancer survivor