Sir Elton John has attacked the Mayor of Venice on Instagram after he banned books about same-sex relationships in schools and nurseries.
The singer, who has two children with husband David Furnish, described newly-elected Luigi Brugnaro as ‘extremely silly looking’, due to his campaign promises to remove 49 books featuring same-sex couples from children’s libraries in the city.
‘He’s stupidly chosen to politicise children’s books by banning titles that touch on same sex families living happily ever after,’ Sir Elton posted on Instagram this weekend.
‘So instead of encouraging a world based on inclusiveness, tolerance and love, he’s championing a future society that’s divisive and fosters ignorance.’
Brugnaro pledged to remove books featuring gay adoption and same-sex partnerships as part of his campaign promises in June this year.
‘We don’t want to discriminate against anyone and at home parents can call themselves daddy number one and daddy number two, but I have to consider the majority of families, which have a mum and a dad,’ he told La Repubblica newspaper.
‘It is parents who should educate children about these things, not schools.’
In response to his decision, more than 250 Italian authors came out in support of the banned writers, asking for their books to be removed from the city in solidarity.
