Missing and Murdered Black Women and Girls office unveils new logo highlighting ongoing crisis

A newly unveiled logo for the Missing and Murdered Black Women and Girls Office is meant to reflect an ongoing effort to bring visibility to a crisis that has long gone overlooked. 

For one Minnesota mother, that crisis is deeply personal. 

Nineteen-year-old Amarie Alowonle was shot and killed during a gathering at a Robbinsdale park in May 2025. She died a week later in the hospital, and still a year later, her family is searching for answers and calling for justice. 

Her mother, Tatiana Kilgore, said her daughter was special. 

“She was beautiful. She was loved. She was my mother's first grandchild,” Kilgore said. 

Kilgore publicly shared her daughter’s story during the office’s 2nd annual Missing and Murdered Black Women and Girls Day on the Hill at the Minnesota State Capitol on April 13, where families, advocates and community members gathered to raise awareness and push for action. 

Amarie Alowonle, 19, was murdered last year and a suspect has yet to be charged.

Nearly a year after Alowonle’s murder, her family is still waiting for accountability.  And stories like hers are part of a border crisis impacting Black women and girls across the state – one that led to the creation of the office. 

The Minnesota office is the nation's first statewide office of its kind, addressing violence and disappearances impacting Black women and girls. Its work includes supporting affected families, identifying systemic gaps and collaborating with law enforcement and community partners to improve outcomes. The office was established through state legislation in 2023 and is housed within the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Office of Justice Programs.

“Black women and girls have too often been overlooked or lost. We are committed to helping families, advocates and communities as they continue to demand justice and lasting change across Minnesota,” said Department of Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson. “This new logo is more than a design. It is a reflection of why the office for Missing and Murdered Black Women and Girls exists.”

Kaleena Burkes was named director of the Office for Missing and Murdered Black Women in March 2024. Since then, the office has expanded into a team working across Minnesota’s 400-plus law enforcement jurisdictions, while also building relationships with community organizations, schools and other systems connected to cases of missing persons. 

“What we've learned is that this is not just a law enforcement issue. We won't solve this epidemic as an office alone. We need to do this work in collaboration,” Burkes said. 

The unveiling of the office’s official logo comes as part of an effort to increase awareness. Designed with symbolic elements reflecting identity and culture, the logo aims to represent Black women and girls across different backgrounds and experiences. The flower’s petals within the new logo are intentionally shaped to resemble the inclusivity of the diverse Black communities across Minnesota, including foundational Black Americans, multi-racial Black Americans and the African immigrant populations. 

“It was very intentional for my team and myself to see all of those identities in our logo, so that we can acknowledge and show support for all of those communities that we represent,” Burkes said. 

For families like Kilgore’s, awareness efforts are closely tied to a need for urgency and accountability in how cases are handled.

As the office continues to grow, officials say community engagement remains essential in addressing the crisis and the logo serves as both a symbol of representation and a call to action. It’s a step toward ensuring that missing and murdered Black women and girls are not forgotten.