article_snippet: (CNN)Italian fashion designer Stefano Gabbana and Elton John are in a war of words on social media, calling for boycotts of each other's work.
article_snippet: John, who has two children with husband David Furnish through IVF, issued a strong repudiation of the statements on Sunday and pledged to boycott the Dolce & Gabbana fashion line.
article_snippet: In response, Gabbana defended his "freedom to speak" and called on fans to boycott John.
article_snippet: Sir Elton appears to be winning the social media war with the hashtag #BoycottDolceGabbana, which by Monday morning had been used more than 35,000 times on Twitter since John invoked it on Sunday.
article_snippet: By comparison, Gabbana's #boycotteltonjohn has been used just 1,600 times on Twitter, according to social media search tool Topsy.
article_snippet: Gabbana was quick to react to this controversy, calling John a "fascist" in an Instagram comment that was later deleted, according to CNN affiliate TGCom24.
article_snippet: By Sunday evening, Gabbana's Instagram feed was full of screengrabs and reposts from people who supported his right to voice his opinion.
article_snippet: It's a shame that you are not allowed to say what you like," one person said in a comment on Gabbana's Instagram.
highlights_snippet: Elton John vows to #BoycottDolceGabbana over in-vitro fertilization comments .
  
highlights_snippet: Stefano Gabbana defends his "freedom to speak" 