I appreciate that you think this is bullshit, but this actually happened to my family. 1970s, rural Californian farming town. The father was an abusive drunk, but because my mother had come out as a lesbian, the judge awarded the father full custody with no visitation rights. My mother literally kidnapped her own son to get him away from the abuse and fled the country to hide from the father. And my brother is glad she did it.
In those days, being gay was seen as worse than being abusive, and made you unfit to be around children.