The singer – and parent to two children born through IVF – reacts to Domenico Dolce’s remarks about ‘synthetic children’ and ‘wombs for rent’ 
 
 Designers Domenico Gabbana and Stefano Dolce have hit back back in a row with Elton John, who called for a boycott of their fashion house after they expressed opposition to gay couples having children. 
 
 
 
 The pair released statements on Sunday insisting they were not seeking to judge families that did not have a mother and father. 
 
 Dolce said that, while his own family was “traditional”, that did not “imply that I don’t understand different ones”. 
 
 
 
 He said: “I was talking about my personal view, without judging other people’s choices and decisions.” 
 
 Gabbana said: “We talked about our way of seeing reality, but it was never our intention to judge other people’s choices. We do believe in freedom and love.” 
 
 Earlier, John and leading gay rights groups had called for the boycott as designers’ comments about fertility treatment were labelled “archaic” and “deeply insulting”. 
 
 
 
 People born through IVF were referred to as “synthetic children” and Gabbana referred to “wombs for rent”. 
 
 John, who has had two children with his husband David Furnish through IVF, said the remarks, which were made in an interview last week, were “out of step with the times”. 
 
 Speaking to the Italian magazine Panorama alongside his business partner, Stefano Gabbana, the designer said children should be born to a mother and a father. 
 
 “I’m not convinced by those I call the children of chemicals, synthetic children,” he added. “Wombs for rent, sperm chosen from a catalogue ... psychiatrists are not ready to confront the effects of this experimentation,” he said. Dolce, who spent more than 20 years in a relationship with Gabbana, went on to say he could not have a child because he was gay. 
 
 Speaking on Sunday, Gabbana said: “We firmly believe in democracy and the fundamental principle of freedom of expression that upholds it.” 
 
 And his business partner said: “I’m Sicilian and I grew up in a traditional family, made up of a mother, a father and children. I am very well aware of the fact that there are other types of families and they are as legitimate as the one I’ve known. 
 
 “But in my personal experience, family had a different configuration. That is the place where I learnt the values of love and family.” 
 
 John became a parent, along with Furnish, in 2010 and 2013 through the use of a surrogate mother in the US. 
 
 Reacting to their interview comments, he wrote on Instagram: “How dare you refer to my beautiful children as ‘synthetic’... And shame on you for wagging your judgemental little fingers at IVF – a miracle that has allowed legions of loving people, both straight and gay, to fulfil their dream of having children.” 
 
 He ended his note with the campaign hashtag #BoycottDolceGabbana. Gay rights activist Peter Tatchell said he was also supporting a D&G boycott. 
 
 He told the Guardian: “It’s quite outrageous that two gay fashion designers who have relied on the gay community for much of their success are opposing gay equality. They’re lining up with the Pope and the far right in their support for legal discrimination.” 
 
 
 
 He added: “If they don’t want to be parents that’s fine, but it’s deeply insulting to disparage the many same sex parents who have brought up children happily and successfully.” 
 
 Ruth Hunt, the chief executive of the LGBT equality group Stonewall, added: “We strongly dispute the comments made by Dolce and Gabbana. Being a good parent has nothing to do with sexual orientation or whether a child has two mums or two dads. The important thing is a loving family, whatever its make up.” 
 
 While the two D&G designers have been collectively criticised for the comments, Gabbana told Panorama he was open to becoming a father and has since said the suggestion he is against gay adoption is wrong. “A question is followed by an answer. Respect comes from accepting different views!” Gabbana wrote on Instagram. 
 
 The magazine interview has also been criticised in Italy, where the president of LGBT rights organisation Arcigay, Flavio Romani, said the two designers should not push their views on others. 
 
 “Their position is absolutely personal and it contradicts the global movement for adoption and gay rights. Gay people have the right to be considered equal to others, in bringing up a child,” he told the Guardian. 
 
 
 
 Dolce & Gabbana celebrates motherhood at Milan fashion week Read more 
 
 While same-sex partnerships and adoption are yet to be legalised in Italy, Romani said other people’s access to such rights should not be opposed on principle. “If there was gay marriage, they’re not obliged to get married. If adoption was possible, they’re not obliged to adopt. There must be an option to make a choice,” he said. 
 
 
 
 Dolce did however win support in Italy from Federica Chiavaroli, a senator from the New Centre-Right (NCD) party. “I’m with @dolcegabbana...Long live the family with a mother and a father,” she wrote on Twitter. 
 
 
 
 federica chiavaroli (@fedechiavaroli) Sto con @dolcegabbana e non con @ivanscalfarotto. Viva la famiglia con una mamma e un papà. #matrimoniogay #adozionigay @NCD_tweet @angealfa 
 
 The traditional family model has been at the centre of the latest fashion campaign by D&G, whose new collection is titled “Viva la mamma”. Off the catwalk, an ongoing #DGfamily social media campaign encourages people to publish their family photos online. 
 
 
 
 Dolce said the campaign was aimed at encouraging families to stick together. “We tried to give the idea of the clan, of the strength of the union. My mother always implored me and my brothers to stay united,” he said. 
 
 But while the tight-knit family has been a staple of Italian branding and advertising for decades, openly excluding same-sex couples has caused controversy. 
 
 Pasta firm Barilla boycotted over 'classic family' remarks Read more 
 
 The country’s leading pasta company, Barilla, faced a boycott in 2013 when its chairman said he would never use a gay family in an advert. Guido Barilla initially said people could pick another pasta brand if they didn’t like his views, but issued an apology following the furore. 
 
 
 
 The negative reaction to Barilla reflected the gradual change in public opinion in Italy, where conservative views have made way for more liberal voices. 
 
 • This article was amended on 19 March 2015. An earlier version referred to designers Domenico Gabbana and Stefano Dolce, rather than Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. ||||| CLOSE Skip in Skip x Embed x Share Elton John, Courtney Love, and Al Roker are some of the celebrities who are calling out the designers behind Dolce & Gabbana for their controversial comments on In Vitro Fertilization. They called the products of IVF "synthetic children." VPC 
 
 Elton John performs in concert during his All the Hits Tour. The musician was offended by comments made by designers Dolce and Gabbana. (Photo: Owen Sweeney/Invision/AP) 
 
 Elton John wrote, "I shall never wear Dolce and Gabbana ever again." 
 
 The musician, other members of the LGBT community and people who have used in vitro fertilization are sharing the #BoycottDolceGabbana hashtag to express outrage over what Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana said to Panoramamagazine. 
 
 As translated by The Telegraph, the pair said, "No chemical offsprings and rented uterus: life has a natural flow, there are things that should not be changed." 
 
 Dolce also added, "You are born to a mother and a father — or at least that's how it should be ... I call children of chemistry, synthetic children. Rented uterus, semen chosen from catalog." 
 
 "The family is not a fad. In it there is a supernatural sense of belonging," Gabbana said. 
 
 John had this to say about the men, who, despite being homosexuals who having dated each other, have previously spoken out against same-sex marriage: 
 
 How dare you refer to my beautiful children as "synthetic". And shame on you for wagging your judgemental little fingers at IVF - a miracle that has allowed legions of loving people, both straight and gay, to fulfil their dream of having children. Your archaic thinking is out of step with the times, just like your fashions. I shall never wear Dolce and Gabbana ever again. #BoycottDolceGabbana A photo posted by Elton John (@eltonjohn) on Mar 14, 2015 at 10:29pm PDT 
 
 "How dare you refer to my beautiful children as 'synthetic.' And shame on you for wagging your judgemental (sic) little fingers at IVF — a miracle that has allowed legions of loving people, both straight and gay, to fulfill their dream of having children. Your archaic thinking is out of step with the times, just like your fashions. I shall never wear Dolce and Gabbana ever again. #BoycottDolceGabbana," he shared on Instagram. 
 
 Producer Ryan Murphy also used the hashtag. He wrote on Twitter, "These designers (sic) horrifying views are never in fashion. Their clothes are as ugly as their hate. #BoycottDolceGabbana." 
 
 NBC's Al Roker weighed in, too. He tweeted, "In spite of what @dolcegabbana think, my beautiful IVF children are not "synthetic children". I agree with (Elton John)" 
 
 In spite of what @dolcegabbana think, my beautiful IVF children are not "synthetic children". I agree with @eltonjohndotcom — Al Roker (@alroker) March 15, 2015 
 
 Gabbana said in a statement, according to AP, that "it was never our intention to judge other people's choices." Dolce says he was expressing his view about family based on his own experience, and that he's aware that other types of families are just as legitimate. 
 
 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1MCZBee
– Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana are continuing their explanation tour after calling kids born via IVF "synthetic." In an interview today, Dolce told CNN that though he does "believe in the traditional family," he doesn't judge those who use IVF. His fashion designer partner Gabbana, for his part, said he doesn't have "anything bad" against IVF, "because the beauty of the world is freedom." Dolce, CNN notes, is the one who initially made the "synthetic" comment, as well as using terms like "chemistry children," "wombs for rent," and "sperm selected from a catalog." Gabbana, though, was the one who responded to Elton John's call for a boycott of the Dolce & Gabbana brand by calling for a counter-boycott of John because everyone should have the "freedom to speak." "Boycott Dolce & Gabbana for what?" Gabbana said to CNN. "They don't think like you? This is correct? This is not correct. We are in 2015. This is like medieval. It's not correct." But Dolce said he's not boycotting John ("I love the music of Elton John") and further explained that his views were based on his Sicilian upbringing and "it is impossible to change my culture for something different. It's me." But, he added, "I respect all the world, all the culture." Gabbana added that the designers—who are gay and were a couple until 2005—"love gay couple. We are gay. We love gay couple. We love gay adoption. We love everything. It's just an express of my private point of view." Added Dolce, "Every people [has] freedom for choosing what they want. This for me is democracy. I respect you because you choose what you want. I respect me because I choose what I want... This just my point of private view."