Sir Elton John's call to boycott fashion brand Dolce & Gabanna following its founders' remarks against same-sex families has gained support from various celebrities, including Ricky Martin, Victoria Beckham, Courtney Love and Martina Navratilova.
The furious singer and songwriter took to Instagram on Sunday, March 15 to call for a boycott against the Italian fashion brand owned by Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. This came as a response to Dolce and Gabbana's earlier comments on gay adoptions and children born through in vitro fertilization (IVF).
In an interview with Italian magazine Panorama, Dolce said children should be born to a mother and father. "I'm not convinced by those I call the children of chemicals, synthetic children," the designer stated. "Wombs for rent, sperm chosen from a catalogue...psychiatrists are not ready to confront the effects of this experimentation."
Gabbana, who had spent 23 years in a relationship with Dolce, agreed and said, "The family is not a fad. In it there is a supernatural sense of belonging."
John, 67, who has two sons with husband David Furnish through IVF, rebuked the pair for their "judgmental" and "archaic" opinions. "How dare you refer to my beautiful children as 'synthetic,'" he wrote on Instagram. "Your archaic thinking is out of step with the times, just like your fashions. I shall never wear Dolce and Gabbana ever again. #BoycottDolceGabbana"
The singer's boycott call has since received support from fellow celebrities, according to Entertainment Weekly. "Sending love to Elton David Zachary Elijah & all the beautiful IVF babies x vb," Victoria Beckham tweeted.
Ricky Martin, who is also a gay parent, gave the Italian designers a shout-out on Twitter, "ur voices R 2powerfull 2B spreading so much h8 https://bit.ly/1CiY63B Wake up,Its 2015 Luv urselves guys #boycottdolcegabbana."
Following the backlash, Dolce and Gabbana released a statement on Sunday, saying they did not intend "to judge other people's choices." "We firmly believe in democracy and the fundamental principle of freedom of expression that upholds it," Gabbana stated.
Dolce said he "grew up in a traditional family" and is "very well aware of the fact that there are other types of families and they are as legitimate as the one I've known." However, in his personal experience, he learned that "family had a different configuration. That is the place where I learnt the values of love and family."
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