There wouldn't have to be laws about it if we all were coming from a place of equality, love, respect, integrity and ethics for all, but sdaly, most people live under "let me do what feels good for me" and that is not what we are here for.
Look, like many single moms, I didn't want my family to be split apart. I wanted to continue to love my children's father and bring them up in an intact family unit. I just wanted to stop being abused and I didn't want my kids in that violence. My abuser chose and continues on his abusive path. He is in need of help, no doubt, but he has moved on to the next target, recruited her to help in his oppression of me but looks like some victim of a father that is getting a bad break.
Do I want my kids around him unsupervised in his unhealthy mentality? No. Especially facing that he may be sexually abusing my kids? Of course not. As their mother, I am tasked with trying teach them that he is the kind of man to avoid and that his choices have been harmful to me and them and somehow teach them what kind of man is healthy for them as adults.
I think the law is actually getting better at doing things more equitably. I think they are realizing that it isn't an issue of "father's rights" versus "mother's rights" and that is truly is what is healthy for the kids. They are trying to regulate the selfish mistakes that we are making as people in our society. The key to addressing the problem is not to change the laws but address why we need them. If we all were doing what we were supposed to do and honor one another as human beings and honor our own children for heaven's sake, we wouldn't have to fight over a parent's rights.
I could care less about the rights of my kids' dad. His rights are not my concern, my children's rights are and I think my children have a right to know what is good in a person and what is bad so they can make better choices and don't suffer the same fate that I have. My children have a right to have a mom that isn't exhausted and sick all the time killing herself trying to make ends meet because their dad wants to have his cake and eat it too. Even 50/50 custody wouldn't address all my kids' rights. It may give me more time to take care of the house, earn a few more bucks and the like, but it doesn't address that they would have more time with a dangerous person who has no sense of socially acceptable standards (having accused me of living under a moral blanket, someone who has the ability to exploit, use and abuse females.
There's a bigger picture here that really takes some thinking out of the box to be able to get your head around. It took me nearly 20 years.