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Nike
US sportswear giant Nike has pulled trainers emblazoned with an early version of the US flag after a complaint from former NFL star Colin Kaepernick, according to reports.
The Betsy Ross flag was used by the American Nazi Party as a symbol.
Mr Kaepernick sparked a furore by kneeling at American football games to protest against police violence against African-Americans.
He then fronted a major advertising campaign for Nike.
Nike withdrew the Air Max 1 Quick Strike Fourth of July trainers, which were intended to celebrate US Independence Day, after Mr Kaepernick said the firm should not use a symbol he and others may find offensive, Bloomberg reported.
The Betsy Ross flag, with a circle of thirteen stars, was created during the American Revolution and later adopted for use by the American Nazi party.
Nike had not responded to requests for comment at the time of writing.
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The Betsy Ross flag was used by the American Nazi Party as a symbol
The reports of Nike pulling the trainer led to some furious commentary on social media, with some conservatives complaining that Mr Kaepernick was “un-American”.
Doug Ducey, the Republican governor of Arizona, said on Twitter that he had ordered financial incentives for Nike to invest in a multi-million dollar factory in Goodyear City to be stopped.
Other conservative Twitter users called for a boycott of Nike products over the move.
However, some Twitter users pointed out that the flag had been used by white nationalists.