The legacy of Royal Rose

On a recent September evening, community members gathered at Y.O.U.T.H. Center in outer southeast Portland. They milled between tables and rows of chairs, perused colorful displays from local partners and filled plates with sandwiches and fruit as The Fentanyl Awareness Event, organized by the Royal Rose Foundation, began.

The Royal Rose Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to serving the Black and brown community in Portland by combating the fentanyl crisis. Founded in 2022 by Portland State alum MJ Jackson, the organization has been growing ever since - most notably at the mid-September event, which was one of the largest gatherings the organization has hosted to date.

"The community showed up," says Jackson "It was amazing."

Usually, event organizers plan for around 50 people but, this time, there were close to 80 people in attendance. Participants listened to presentations from representatives from the Drug Enforcement Administration and local law enforcement, shared personal stories and learned how to use Narcan, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses. One of the best parts, says Jackson, was that attendees got to know each other and hear new perspectives during the group workshops.

People left with Visa gift cards, Narcan kits and stronger connections - all things that Jackson believes will help raise awareness around the fentanyl crisis and combat its impact within Portland's Black and brown community.

LEADING THE WAY

Jackson, B.A. Criminology & Criminal Justice '24, never thought she would find herself running a nonprofit - especially not one she founded.

Growing up, she was always interested in justice, and dreamed of becoming a criminal defense lawyer. In 2020, she enrolled at PSU to take the first steps in pursuing that dream. But during Jackson's second year of school, she received unexpected and devastating news.

Her mother, Sheres Isom, the cornerstone of her family and a tireless caregiver for quadriplegics, had died from a fentanyl overdose. Jackson was stunned. Her mother did not abuse substances, and had never used fentanyl.

As she began to process her mother's death, Jackson felt she had to do something, and started to research the insidious drug.

"I didn't know that this country was in a crisis," she says. "As I did my research, I noticed only white people talking about this. I said, 'Well, I know this is happening in our community.' Either people are not thinking about it, people don't know or they're just afraid."

That realization led Jackson to start the Royal Rose Foundation while she was still a student at Portland State.

A FIRST IN EVERYTHING

Jackson has always been comfortable tackling new and unfamiliar challenges. As the oldest of five siblings, Jackson says she has long tried to lead by example and has been the first in her family to do everything - including going to college.

When Jackson enrolled as a full-time student at PSU in the fall of 2020, she was already balancing multiple responsibilities, including running a cleaning business. "I'm far from the average student," she says. "I always had to maintain a job throughout my college career - I've never not worked. Then I had my son just as I was entering, and was a single mom."

Her dream of becoming a criminal defense lawyer led her to major in Criminology & Criminal Justice, and, originally, Jackson thought she would minor in business. But after taking an impactful class in the Black Studies department, she decided to switch her minor.

"We don't get the same resources as other people do," says Jackson, who is Black. "I'm already aware of that but I don't know it all. The Black Studies minor amplified my knowledge."

We don't get the same resources as other people do. I'm already aware of that but I don't know it all. The Black Studies minor amplified my knowledge.

The classes she took in Black Studies, and the professors she met there, played a pivotal role in her college experience. She developed an especially close bond with Professor Darrell Millner, who has taught Black Studies at PSU since 1975 and continues to teach classes, now as professor emeritus.

Jackson met Millner while taking his course on Oregon Black History, and says he became a source of motivation as well as tough love. "He was very strict with me," she says. "I would come in with excuses, and he would say, 'MJ, you have so much potential. You just have to learn discipline and time management.'"

"MJ had tremendous motivation, and she's very intelligent," says Millner. "I tried to encourage her to reevaluate the upper ceiling that her potential represents, but also to understand it wouldn't come unless she devoted some time and energy to take advantage of that natural intelligence that she has."

OVERCOMING TRAGEDY

Millner and Jackson were still in touch when she received the devastating news about her mother and found herself facing her greatest challenge yet.

"Losing my mom was one of the hardest things that I have ever experienced. I did not think I was going to make it," she says. "I didn't think I was going to graduate. I took a whole term off, and I had never done such a thing. I've always been a full time student."

Millner urged Jackson to keep going. He acknowledged the obstacles she faced and then encouraged her to refocus on her dreams.

"She's had tremendous challenges to overcome," says Millner. "The kind of obstacles to her success are things that most people don't have to experience. But she's determined to be successful. You see that kind of energy in everything that she does."

RAISING AWARENESS

Though Jackson eventually returned to PSU - and kept herself on track to graduate in 2024 - questions around her mother's death remained unanswered. When police told Jackson they didn't have the resources to investigate, she felt she had to take action, both for her mother's memory and to prevent another family from experiencing a similar tragedy.

Jackson wanted to raise awareness about the dangers of fentanyl in the Black and brown community in Portland - a community that is disproportionately affected by the drug. But at first, she wasn't sure how she could best make an impact.

"Should I open a caregiving facility? Open a coffee shop?" she recalls wondering. "I've always been passionate, I've always been an advocate. Then it just came to me."

She decided to start a nonprofit, and founded the Royal Rose Foundation with the intent of helping as many people as possible. "I'm doing it for my community," says Jackson. "It might just be white people talking about this, but it's not just happening to them."

And, she says, running the foundation helps her grieve.

The Royal Rose Foundation, named for one of her mother's nicknames, focuses on community. They host trainings to share opioid prevention strategies and resources aimed at supporting families who've been affected by the fentanyl crisis. They've partnered with local and national institutions, including the DEA and Portland Police Bureau, and are working on collaborations with local schools, nonprofits and health departments to expand their reach.

There's no face to fentanyl. The only face of fentanyl is death. People need to understand that it can happen to anyone.

Marcus Pickett, Community Outreach Specialist for the Seattle Field Division of the DEA, met Jackson last year. He was immediately impressed.

"She is the only African American person in all [of Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska] talking about what happened to her, trying to save other people. That is very rare," he says. "I felt like this was a great time to partner with someone who was so brave and who was showing her ability to put the word out, especially amongst the African American community, where there's a stigma. So I said, 'Anytime you have an event, I will drive from Seattle. As long as you invite me, I will come.'"

Pickett sees Jackson's work as uniquely important. "People are drawn to her. And it's not just the African American community - at the last event, there were a lot of Latinos there, and the Asian community as well," he says. "Sometimes people need to see that there's diversity in the community that's talking about this, that's providing Narcan training, that's bringing this awareness. She's one of the few people who's able to go into those communities and have a voice that people pay attention to. That's why she's so powerful."

Jackson is aware of the stigma associated with talking openly about fentanyl and drug use. Combating that stigma is a big focus for the organization.

"There's no face to fentanyl," Jackson says. "The only face of fentanyl is death. People [need to] understand that it can happen to anyone. It's not just happening to the houseless population. That's far from the truth. It's happening to regular people like you and I. My mom was a regular person. One pill can kill - that's all there is to it."

Since its inception, Jackson has put countless unpaid hours into the nonprofit, which continues to grow. The foundation recently moved into its own office space and can now provide more community offerings than ever, including walk-in Narcan training services, free Narcan, youth-specific programming and a resource hub offering food and other wraparound services for individuals and families. They also host events focused on community safety, with training on CPR, emergency preparedness, domestic violence awareness and more.

Jackson sees this work as a way to honor her mother's legacy and continue the fight against fentanyl. "I don't want any other family, any other child, to experience losing a parent this way," she says.

A BRIGHT FUTURE

Since graduating from PSU, Jackson has dedicated herself to growing the foundation, providing support and resources to her community while she advocates at the local and state level for action on the opioid crisis.

She also stays busy working her day job at a community nonprofit in North Portland and studying for the LSAT. Meanwhile, she recently started an internship with the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office. One day, as a lawyer, she plans to continue to work on behalf of her community.

"Royal Rose will always be here," says Jackson. "I want us to be a pillar in the community, [something for] the Black community to know they can count on. I want to have a building on MLK [Boulevard]. People can walk in, use computers. And when I become an attorney, I want to be a public defender. I'm going to offer pro bono services for people who walk through the door and need an attorney."

Pickett believes in Jackson's potential to expand the reach of her organization, including partnering with top national organizations.

"I told her, you could go as far as you want to with this because you're one of the few people in your situation with your intelligence and your desire," he says. "She has already been recognized and been asked to participate with many larger coalitions and federal partners."

He sees the Royal Rose Foundation working alongside other national fentanyl awareness organizations, like Song for Charlie, which has already connected with Jackson. But she'll need the resources to support her vision.

"She has to have the right funding behind her. She needs the support and the backing of her alumni," says Pickett. "She could be one of the DEA's top national partners. She's doing amazing work. As long as she's pushing towards something, she's going to make it happen."

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