Complex sentence: Carson's comments drew criticism for apparently lumping together gays with pedophiles and practitioners of bestiality, and a group of Hopkins students circulated a petition asking that Carson be replaced as the university's commencement speaker.
Split into simpler sentences: Carson's comments drew criticism for equating gays with pedophiles and practitioners of bestiality. A group of Hopkins students circulated a petition asking that Carson be replaced as the university's commencement speaker.