Converse pulls ad after backlash over alleged KKK imagery
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Converse pulls ad after backlash over alleged KKK imagery |
NEW YORK — September 22, 2026
Nike-owned Converse has removed an advertisement for its Chuck 70 X sneaker after criticism that the image evoked imagery associated with the Ku Klux Klan and the history of Black lynchings in the United States. The company also apologized, saying it understood why the image had caused distress.
The advertisement showed the lower part of a person wearing a white, calf-length garment while holding a pair of black sneakers. Critics on social media said the clothing resembled a Ku Klux Klan robe and that the image's lighting and shadows created shapes they associated with a KKK hood and a hanging figure.
Converse said the advertisement had been removed from its social media accounts and that it was working to take the image down from other locations where it had appeared. The company said it recognized that the image was deeply upsetting and acknowledged that it should not have been published.
The advertisement was part of a campaign for the Chuck 70 X sneaker, a collaboration involving K-pop singer Karina of the group Aespa. Karina was not immediately available for comment.
The Ku Klux Klan is a white supremacist organization with a long history of racial violence in the United States, including attacks and killings targeting Black Americans. The criticism of the Converse advertisement centered on whether its visual elements unintentionally recalled that history.
Converse and Nike had not immediately responded to further requests for comment. The advertisement was no longer available through Converse's social media accounts at the time of the report.
