Ralph Lauren apologizes for Native American ads

Ralph Lauren's holiday ad campaign for its RRL line is being criticized for its "assimilation aesthetic" that features what appear to be antique photos of stoic Native Americans dressed in Western attire.

"Not sure labeling these as 'Fat Girl Costumes' is the best approach." Twitter user Kristyn Washburn tweeted at Walmart on October 21, after discovering how the plus-size Halloween costumes for women were labeled. The retail giant apologized six days later, after media outlets like Jezebel reported on the classification. It's currently investigating how the labeling occurred. "This never should have been on our site. It is unacceptable and we apologize," said Ravi Jariwala, a spokesperson for Walmart. "We worked quickly to remove it this morning and are taking additional steps to ensure this never happens again."

Online shoppers were shocked to find a ring featuring a swastika design listed for sale on Sears' website in October. After consumers unleashed criticism via Twitter, and media outlets like Haaretz and Kveller publicized the gaffe, Sears pulled down the ad and expressed regret about its placement on the site. "This item is a 3rd party Sears Marketplace product that does not abide with our guidelines and has been removed," the company responded via Twitter.

After coming under criticism, Urban Outfitters has stopped selling a "vintage" Kent State sweatshirt that has what appears to be simulated blood splatter on it. Kent State was the site of a 1970 shooting that left four students dead and nine wounded during a Vietnam War protest. Urban Outfitters issued an apology via Twitter and said the red stains were not meant to resemble blood.

Spanish fashion retailer Zara apologized in August for selling a striped T-shirt that drew criticism for its resemblance to uniforms worn by Jewish concentration camp inmates. Zara said the garment, advertised online as a striped "sheriff" T-shirt, was inspired by "the sheriff's stars from the Classic Western films."

Victoria's Secret pulled its "Sexy Little Geisha" lingerie in September 2012 after Asian-Americans called it offensive on websites like Racialicious.

The Italian fashion house Dolce & Gabbana faced allegations of racism in 2012 for earrings that some people thought portrayed racist stereotypes. An article on D&G's website Swide.com explained that the earrings were inspired by Moorish features and that "Moorish is a term used to define many peoples throughout history."

After advertising the shoe on its Facebook page in June 2012, sports apparel maker Adidas withdrew its plans to sell a controversial sneaker featuring affixed rubber shackles. "The design of the JS Roundhouse Mid is nothing more than the designer Jeremy Scott's outrageous and unique take on fashion and has nothing to do with slavery," Adidas said in a statement. "We apologize if people are offended by the design and we are withdrawing our plans to make them available in the marketplace."

In March 2012, Nike promoted a shoe referred to as the "Black and Tan" SB low dunk, with a planned release date on St. Patrick's Day. However "Black and Tan" also refers to a paramilitary group that is known for terrorizing Ireland after World War I, making the shoe's moniker unpopular in Ireland. Nike apologized, saying that no offense was intended.

In March 2012, Belvedere Vodka posted a controversial ad on its Facebook page that many felt implied rape. Belvedere's senior vice president of marketing posted an apology, saying the ad also offended "the people who work here at Belvedere."

The Navajo Nation sued Urban Outfitters for its use of the word Navajo on a line of products in February 2012.

Summer's Eve took down several videos from its website in 2011 after allegations that they were racially insensitive. The campaign was titled "Hail to the V" and depicted talking hands meant to represent women's vaginas. "Stereotyping or being offensive was not our intention in any way, shape, or form," Stacie Barnett, a spokeswoman for the advertising company, told Adweek. "The decision to take the videos down is about acknowledging that there's backlash here. We want to move beyond that and focus on the greater mission."

Soon after being posted in 2011, a billboard in New York City promoting the Wodka brand of vodka was removed after critics called the ad anti-Semitic. "We never intended to offend people," said Brian Gordon, the creative lead on the campaign. "But if we're actually offending or upsetting people, that's not in the spirit of our marketing so we're taking it down." Gordon, who is Jewish, said the point of the campaign was to liken the brand to Hanukkah as the "understated" holiday of the season.

In 2007, computer chip maker Intel was forced to retract an ad that many considered racist. "Intel's intent ... was to convey the performance capabilities of our processors through the visual metaphor of a sprinter," an Intel official wrote online. "We have used the visual of sprinters in the past successfully. Unfortunately, our execution did not deliver our intended message and in fact proved to be insensitive and insulting. ... We are sorry and are working hard to make sure this doesn't happen again."

CNN iReporter Lyndsay Brock, working at the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center in Iraq, shared this photo of a Diet Pepsi can that caused some controversy online in 2011. Some said the imagery resembled the Twin Towers and a plane flying overhead. Pepsi responded that any such resemblance was unintentional and that the design was inspired by the skyline in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

The makers of Cocaine energy drink were forced to pull their product off store shelves due to controversy surrounding its name in 2007. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration had warned the company against marketing a product that makes reference to an illegal drug.

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Editor's note: This article has been updated with a statement from Ralph Lauren.

(CNN) -- Ralph Lauren's 2014 holiday ad campaign for its RRL line was raked over the coals on social media this week for its "assimilation aesthetic," featuring what appear to be antique photos of stoic Native Americans dressed in Western attire.

Now, the company is apologizing for the imagery and has since removed the images from its website.

"Ralph Lauren has a longstanding history in celebrating the rich history, importance and beauty of our country's Native American heritage," the company said in a statement. "We recognize that some of the images depicted in the RRL look book may have caused offense and we have removed them from our website."

Ruth Hopkins, a contributor to the site Last Real Indians, took issue with the campaign's use of Native Americans, claiming that the imagery is not only ignorant, it's a harsh reminder of a time of extreme oppression, and even genocide, for the nation's indigenous people.

"What many people alive today fail to realize is Natives of the Assimilation Era wore western clothes because they were forced to do so," she wrote.

The policy of cultural assimilation of Native Americans spanned roughly from the 1800s midway into the 20th century as a way to "Americanize" indigenous people through forced English education, sending children away to boarding schools and banning tribal religious traditions. Some policies were enforced through threat of violence.

Hopkins urged the public to email the designer about their objections and to take the brand to task using the social media hash tag #BoycottRalphLauren.

"It's wrong for him to use the portraits of our ancestors for personal gain," she told CNN in an email.

Taking Native American fashion 'Beyond Buckskin' and headdresses

Hopkins told CNN she had not heard from the company at the time of publishing, but that she was thankful for the response from others who agree the use of the images is inappropriate.

Ralph Lauren has been one of the world's most recognized names for American sportswear for nearly 50 years.

"He seeks to champion classic Americana. Fine. So be it. But, there's one problem. We aren't your token Indians," Hopkins said.

Native American designers fight cultural caricatures