Converse pulls sneaker ad critics say includes racist imagery

The sneaker company Converse has removed a social media ad that sparked outrage among critics who viewed it as evoking the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and lynching.

The Instagram ad photo showed K-pop singer Karina wearing a skirt and holding a pair of Chuck 70 X sneakers.

Critics lashed out online, saying a white triangular image created by lighting on the skirt resembled a KKK hood and the way she held the sneakers made them look like the dangling feet of a lynching victim.

Converse, owned by Nike, issued a statement apologising and said it had removed the ad.

"We're sorry," the statement said.

"We understand why this image is deeply upsetting and recognise that we got this wrong. We removed it from our channels and are working to remove it everywhere it appeared. 

"This should not have happened and we will do better."

Converse, based in Boston in the United States, declined to answer questions seeking additional information, including how the company screened ads before they were posted and how the ad was approved.

Karina and her management company, SM Entertainment Group, did not immediately respond to messages through their Instagram accounts.

Corporations 'failing the same test'

Retailers and top fashion brands have issued a string of apologies over the years for products and advertising criticised for being racially insensitive.

Last month, US retailer Target Corporation pulled a children's Halloween costume from its shelves after widespread social media backlash, apologising for selling a garment that critics said evoked racist minstrel caricatures.

The Converse photo sparked swift criticism, including calls for staff involved in the ad to be fired and for a boycott of the company.

In a slew of comments on social media, posters questioned how the ad could have cleared the company's advertising vetting process.

Other commenters defended Converse, saying they did not believe it was intentional.

Civil rights attorney Lee Merritt, who is based in Texas, posted on Instagram that Converse's apology "doesn't undo what got past legal, marketing and leadership at every step".

"We keep having this conversation because corporations keep failing the same test," he wrote. 

"Do better means catching this before it airs — not after we're offended."

Converse, founded in Malden, Massachusetts, in 1908, makes the iconic Chuck Taylor All Star sneaker. 

It was first released in 1917 as a non-skid basketball shoe, adding the signature of Taylor, a basketball player who promoted the sneaker, in 1934, according to the company's website.