Converse apologized and pulled a shoe ad last week that some claimed featured Ku Klux Klan imagery.
The ad, which has been removed from the Nike subsidiary’s social media pages, featured K-pop singer Karina of the girl group aespa promoting the Chuck 70 X and Run Star Crush sneakers. In the ad, Karina held a pair of black high-top shoes under a star-shaped spotlight while wearing a long white skirt.
Several social media users asserted that Karina resembled a KKK member, with the shoes resembling a lynching victim. Critics included Rep. Troy Carter, D-La., who released a statement on the ad on Friday.
“Nike and Converse, what the hell were you thinking?” Carter said. “Your campaign shows what looks like a hooded Klansman, framed by what appears to be the dangling feet of a lynching victim. There is nothing creative or artistic about it. It is racist, reckless and deeply offensive.”
After facing backlash, Converse eventually pulled the ad and released a statement apologizing for the campaign.
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“We’re sorry. We understand why this image is deeply upsetting and recognize 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,” the statement sent to Fox News Digital read.
This latest ad backlash comes as Nike is set to be removed from the S&P 100 after nearly 18 years, following its value dropping by more than $200 billion since 2021.
Conservative critics have frequently accused Nike of embracing woke politics by partnering with progressive figures like Colin Kaepernick and Dylan Mulvaney. However, Nike has faced backlash from the left as well.
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In April, Nike went viral with a Boston Marathon ad reading “Runners welcome. Walkers tolerated” which critics claimed was “pace-shaming” participants.
In a new comment to Fox News Digital, a Carter spokesperson said that the apology was not enough.
“An apology and the removal of the images are not enough. Nike and Converse must explain how this campaign was conceived and approved, identify those responsible, and commission an independent investigation. They must also disclose the process and establish safeguards to ensure that imagery invoking the Klan and the lynching of Black people is never approved again,” Carter’s office said.
