Converse pulls 'deeply upsetting' advert after backlash

American footwear brand Converse has withdrawn an advertisement after social media users said it evoked Ku Klux Klan imagery, acknowledging that it "got this wrong". The photograph, posted to the company’s Instagram account, drew criticism as users described the lighting in the representation as resembling a white pointed hood. A pair of shoes dangling in the image were also likened to a depiction of a lynching victim. In an apology originally issued on Friday, Converse said the photograph had been removed from its social media channels and that it was working to take it down elsewhere. "This should not person happened and we volition bash better," it said. The statement also read: "We're sorry. We recognize wherefore this representation is profoundly upsetting and admit that we got this wrong". The image was part of a campaign promoting the Chuck 70 X trainer, which launched internationally on 27 August. The campaign features South Korean vocalist Karina of the K‑pop group Aespa, who appears in a series of advertisements for the shoes. Founded in Massachusetts in the early 1900s, Converse’s popularity surged after its Chuck Taylor sneaker debuted on U.S. basketball courts in 1917. The brand has been a subsidiary of Nike since 2003.