Converse Pulls Ad After Fans Compare Imagery To KKK Robes, Social Media Debates Outrage
The storied brand’s Korea arm partnered with K-pop star Karina for its global Chuck 70 campaign.
Black News 
Converse is the latest brand to come under fire and anger fans.
Only it’s not for the classic Chuck Taylor going up in price or collaborating with someone problematic, but for imagery in one of its latest campaigns.
The storied brand’s Korea arm partnered with K-pop star Karina for its global Chuck 70 campaign. So, she posed for a few photos, including one that shows her from the waist down, wearing a long white skirt and gripping a pair of Chucks in her hand.
A Converse star logo is projected onto the floor, with three pairs of sneakers neatly placed around her.
While some just interpreted it as artsy, others likened the flowy skirt to a Ku Klux Klan robe, and with one of the star’s points reflecting back on the skirt, some compared it to the hate group’s hood and lynchings.
Social media felt some people were reaching and jumping to conclusions; others felt the photos were offensive, and Converse apologized before actively beginning to pull the ad.
“We’re sorry. We understand why this image is deeply upsetting and recognize that we got this wrong,” Converse told Footwear News. “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.”
Other campaign shots show full photos of Karina wearing that same allegedly offensive outfit, proving it was a Converse-branded skirt. She paired it with a washed black Original Converse cutoff tee and a sheer shirt beneath.
The collection was rounded out with a skirt, a blue version of the sneakers, and two pairs of the chunky-soled Star Crush model.
Karina is part of South Korean pop group aespa and has been part of the Nike family since 2025, as she has been in campaigns before, like the Swoosh’s big FIFA World Cup push, and helped introduce its women-led athlete uniform tech called Studio Fleece.
For Karina, her love for Nike goes back to her childhood, watching TV.
“As a child, I loved watching TV,” she told Nike. “It was where I first saw musical artists perform, and it fueled in me a dream to become one of the stars on that stage, who were always wearing Nikes on their feet. That was when my connection with Nike began. The brand is like second nature to me now. I’ll rock the Air Force 1 without thinking twice.”
See social media’s reaction to the Converse controversy below.
