Converse has apologized and pulled a sneaker ad after online backlash over imagery critics compared to the Ku Klux Klan and lynching.
The ad, part of Converse’s global campaign for its Chuck 70 X sneaker, featured K-pop star Karina of the group Aespa standing beneath a star-shaped spotlight while holding a pair of black high-top Converse sneakers. She wore a long white skirt, while the lighting made her silhouette look to many social media users like a KKK hood, with the dangling sneakers drawing comparisons to a lynching victim.
