See Dolce & Gabbana’s new tees, bags with gay parents on them

Avid Instagram user Gabbana posted photos of handbags and t-shirts adorned with childlike drawings of family groups of two men or two women with children of various ages.

Italian fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have appeared to weigh in to an impassioned debate about gay people’s rights in their home country with cosy designs showing same-sex couples with children.

Last year, Dolce angered many when he used the common derogatory term “womb rental” for surrogacy, which is banned in Italy. His comments were thought unlikely to harm sales, but drew threats of boycott from the likes of British singer Elton John.

Read: Dolce and Gabbana apologise for anti-IVF, anti-gay rant

New social media posts suggested they had relaxed their views. Avid Instagram user Gabbana posted photos of handbags and t-shirts adorned with childlike drawings of family groups of two men or two women with children of various ages.

Feverish opposition to a bill currently before parliament to offer limited rights to same-sex and unmarried heterosexual couples is mainly focused on a provision that would allow gay people to adopt their partner’s biological children.

Last year, Dolce angered many when he used the common derogatory term “womb rental” for surrogacy, which is banned in Italy.

Another user commented “Volta&Gabbana” on the picture of the handbags, a pun on the Italian for “turncoat”, or someone who switches allegiance between two causes. Gabbana replied “Yesss”.

See: Dolce & Gabbana just diversified fashion with its hijab collection

The pair, who remained business partners after their romantic relationship ended, have put pregnant models on the catwalk and are selling a t-shirt showing a cartoonish image of themselves with their dogs and cats, with #dgfamily on the back.

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