Huge petition underway in California to put sweeping amendment in constitution that would ban gay marriage, take rights away from domestic partners including health benefits that extend to children, and revoke hospital visitation rights. The petition requires 600,000 signatures. “The language of the proposed amendment is breath-taking in its hostility and sweep,” said Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights. “The amendment is the most extreme and mean-spirited of any previously submitted anywhere else in the nation.”