Nike-owned Converse yanks sneaker ad after viewers see KKK hood — and it gets worse

BS BULLETIN:

Converse pulled an ad after critics said its imagery resembled a Ku Klux Klan hood and a lynching.
Another recent Converse campaign image showed people reaching for shoes hanging from a tree.
The Nike-owned company apologized: “This should not have happened and we will do better.”

Converse has pulled a sneaker advertisement and apologized after an image featuring K-pop star Karina triggered a firestorm over what critics said looked disturbingly like Ku Klux Klan and lynching imagery.

The ad promoted Converse’s Chuck 70 X sneakers and showed Karina, a member of the K-pop group aespa, wearing a white skirt while holding a pair of black high-top shoes.

But viewers weren’t looking at the sneakers for long.

The lighting across Karina’s white clothing created a large triangular shape that critics said resembled the pointed hood of a KKK robe.

Then there were the shoes.

Because Karina held the black sneakers dangling beside the white garment, critics said the overall composition appeared to evoke the feet of a lynching victim.

The backlash spread rapidly online, with critics asking how the image could possibly have made it through the company’s advertising approval process. Others defended Converse and said they did not believe the imagery was intentional.

Converse eventually removed the ad and apologized.

“We’re sorry,” the Nike-owned company said. “We understand why this image is deeply upsetting and recognize that we got this wrong.”

The company said it had removed the image from its channels and was working to eliminate it everywhere it had appeared, adding: “This should not have happened and we will do better.”

But another Converse image circulating online added fuel to the controversy.

That advertisement, from a separate Converse collaboration, showed models using a wooden ladder to reach shoes hanging from a tree branch.

The Los Angeles Times reported that both images came under criticism, while People reported that the tree-and-ladder image had appeared on Converse Malaysia’s Instagram account as part of a campaign for another sneaker collection.

Rep. Troy Carter, D-La., was among those demanding answers from Converse and parent company Nike.

Carter said the imagery appeared to show a hooded Klansman and the dangling feet of a lynching victim and called the campaign “racist, reckless and deeply offensive.”

His office later told Fox News that simply removing the images and apologizing wasn’t enough, calling on the companies to explain how the campaign was approved and establish safeguards to prevent similar imagery from getting through again.

Converse has not explained who created or approved the controversial ad.

The company also declined to answer questions from the Associated Press about its screening process and how the advertisement made it through approval.

That’s a rough Monday at Converse. Cue the dramatic meltdowns ( LANGUAGE WARNING) :

NEW: Boycott of Converse has spread among the left-wing woke mob, with some people burning, cutting up, painting over the logo and throwing away the brand’s shoes after the company released a new ad for its iconic sneakers.

The campaign featured a female model holding a pair of… pic.twitter.com/N2tDlHQXq9

— I Meme Therefore I Am 🇺🇸 (@ImMeme0) September 19, 2026