Arabic version: كونفرس تسحب إعلاناً بعد انتقادات عبر الإنترنت

According to BBC News, American footwear brand Converse has removed an advert after social media users said its imagery evoked the Ku Klux Klan.

The image, posted on Converse’s Instagram account, drew criticism over lighting that users described as resembling a white pointed hood. A pair of shoes hanging in the photograph was also compared by social media users to an image of a lynching victim.

In an apology first issued on Friday, Converse said it had removed the photograph from its social media channels and was working to remove it elsewhere. “We’re sorry. We understand why this image is deeply upsetting and recognize that we got this wrong,” the company said.

Converse added: “This should not have happened and we will do better.” The photograph was part of an international campaign for the Chuck 70 X trainer, launched on 27 August.

The campaign features South Korean singer Karina of the K-pop group Aespa in a series of advertisements for the shoes. Converse was founded in Massachusetts in the early 1900s and has been a subsidiary of Nike since 2003.