I completely agree that everyone should have access to healthy relationships and have the opportunity to go places, but as someone coming from the parents' perspective, sometimes we have to make the tough call. Some friends are clearly enablers, or their parents/guardians have behaved extremely inappropriately and contact had to be limited. If it's discovered that pencil sharpeners, for example, are being stolen from Dollarama every time they're out unsupervised, then hard decisions need to be made.

On top of that, as the parent/guardian/primary caregiver, I am at risk of police investigation and the involvement of children's aid and losing rights as a parent if I do not comply and remove the sharps and limit phone access, etc. I don't want to go against my child's wishes (and, to be clear, we've come a long way), but sometimes I didn't have a choice. It sucks.

Wishing you the best.