You'd think so, but that isn't how many right wing parents think. As I learned when I read George Lakoff's book Moral Politics, the Strict Father Mentality involves conforming to the beliefs and ideas of those who have "legitimate authority" over you.
https://medium.com/inside-of-elle-beau/moral-politics-the-nation-as-a-family-debf41dd160d
"The Strict Father model is what we might refer to as traditional and patriarchal. In this model, the man is the head of the household and his wife and children defer to his authority, which he uses to guide them, encourage them, and keep them safe. He typically sets and enforces rules for the house. Self-discipline, self-reliance, and respect for legitimate authority are the crucial things that children must learn. In this way, the strict father shows his love, by putting those in his charge on the correct path and punishing them if they go off of it. This is how he prepares his children for a happy and successful life.
On a societal scale, this translates to a belief in the rightness of a dominance-based hierarchy, law and order, self-sufficiency, and respect for authority. “Rewards and punishments are moral acts; giving someone an appropriate reward or punishment balances the moral books. The obligation to obey is a metaphorical debt. You owe obedience to someone who has authority over you. If you obey, you are paying the debt; if you don’t obey, you are refusing to pay the debt — an immoral act, equivalent by moral arithmetic to stealing, a crime.”
I honestly think that at least some of these kinds of people don't really care if kids get bullied or kill themselves or end up in locked institutions - because those things seem like "appropriate" consequences for failing to toe their line. And they clearly want their kids to not be their own person but to adhere to all their own beliefs and biases (talk about true indoctrination).
I'm so glad that you had a positive experience in Montreal, and you're absolutely correct, if they want to talk about parental rights, they need to consider the rights of all parents (and all children).
