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The idea that you have to ask the woman's father for his 'permission' is one of the most hateful, misogynistic ideas you can find. Not the mother's permission, the father's. Because all women belong to the patriarch don't they? You can argue it's just a formality, it's etiquette but it arises from a view of men and women that is so old, so discredited and so vile that even paying lip service to it shows how reactionary and out of touch they are.

Fucking calm down. Most people do it out a general respect for the family of the bride that has nothing to do with sexism. The idea that it's the father that is asked is just a hangover of tradition. The tradition of consulting the family is a good one in my opinion. To assume that everyone who "pays lip service to it" is an obnoxious sexist is ridiculous and egocentric.