Sneaker brand Converse has ditched a “deeply upsetting” ad that has been likened to the American white supremacist group the Ku Klux Klan and lynching.

The Nike-owned brand found itself at the centre of an internet storm over the ad campaign, which stars singer Karina from K-pop band Aespa to promote Chuck 70 X and Run Star Crush sneakers.

One image from the campaign, which started in late August, shows Karina standing under the light of a star-shaped spotlight while holding a pair of black high-top sneakers and wearing a calf-length white skirt.

The imagery was immediately interpreted by social media users as racist.

Some critics argued the lighting in the ad created an outline on the long white skirt that looked like a KKK hood. Others said that the way Karina was holding the shoes mimicked lynching imagery.

“No, you’re not crazy. Yes, the Converse ad is racist,” one user wrote on X. “Yes, it looks like a Klan outfit. Yes, it looks like a lynching. And no, ‘it’s just a shoe ad’ is not a defence.”

Converse was also criticised for another recent image featured two models climbing a wooden ladder to reach pairs of shoes hanging from a tree branch. According to Women’s Wear Daily, the image was shared on the the brand’s Malaysia Instagram account highlighting the Converse x Palmes campaign for the Jack Purcell PDM sneaker collection.

“The Klan silhouette is one thing,” one user wrote on Threads. “But the tree, ladder, and person in the distance looking up while holding up Converse shoes. Abhorrent. Unfathomable. Repugnant.”

As the backlash spread and chatter began about a boycott, Converse issued an an apology.

“We’re sorry. We understand why this image is deeply upsetting and recognise that we got this wrong,” it said on Friday (US time).

“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.”

Louisiana Congressman Troy Carter was particularly critical of how Converse handled the controversy.

“Nike and Converse, what the hell were you thinking?” he wrote in a press release. “I am a black man, a son of the South and a member of Congress from Louisiana. Where I come from, the image of black people hanging from trees is not ancient history.

“That pain still lives in our families and communities. The white hood is not some harmless costume. It is a symbol of terror, murder and generations of racial violence.”

Carter said “black pain is not a marketing prop” and demanded that Converse “answer for” its mistake.

“Lynching is not a creative concept. The Ku Klux Klan is not an aesthetic,” he said. “This campaign should never have been created, approved or released. Nike and Converse must answer for it. You have caused real harm, and repairing that harm will require more than an apology written by your public relations department.”

Converse was founded in Massachusetts in the early 1900s. Its popularity has skyrocketed since its Chuck Taylor sneaker was first introduced to US basketball courts in 1917.

The global brand has been a subsidiary of Nike since 2003.