'Racist' Harry Styles Poses in Native American Headdress

One Direction star Harry Styles is at the centre of a racism row after posting an image of himself in a Native American headdress.

The 20-year-old singer provoked a backlash when he shared the image on Twitter and Instagram, with some fans branding it offensive.

Criticism was spearheaded by a popular Twitter account, @1DUpdates, which has almost 800,000 followers.

cultural appropriation is not nice, regardless of context or intent. let's leave it at that.
— 1D Updates (@1Dneews) March 14, 2014

Some supporters accused the account, run by @sharon__scottm @tiffanyytao, @kristyleaa and @sydneyanne_x, of portraying Taylor Swift's former lover in a negative light.

"Maybe he just liked the way it looked on his head," a user by the name of Annie hit back.

As the debate boiled over on social media, the account continued to defend its stance and insisted that Styles was a role model who had a responsibilty to his fans.

@annabelchr trying to downplay it to protect him. i love harry and i'm sure he's not 'racist' but we shouldn't turn a blind eye.
— 1D Updates (@1Dneews) March 14, 2014

perpetuate it myself. that's why it's even more important to recognize our mistakes and to act on them.
— 1D Updates (@1Dneews) March 14, 2014

i don't think harry is a bad person. i think there's underlying inequality all around the world in current times. i know that i even-
— 1D Updates (@1Dneews) March 14, 2014

Although Styles has not commented on the backlash, he has deleted the image.