Feel so guilty i didn't say something

[SuchACoward]

Today I saw an adult forcefully hit a child. Not sure if they were the parent. Quite possibly could have been.
The coward that I am, all I could do was give them a look of disapproval.

There were a group of them and me and my dc. It was sickening to see and I feel so much regret that I didn't do or say anything. The poor child, I keep seeing their sad face.

Realistically, what should I have done?
It was me and my dc vs the child and four adults.

It's a very hard situation to be in when you have your own kid there.

I wouldn't want to provoke an angry adult while I was with my kids.

Is it somewhere with CCTV, could you report now?

Have you become the thread police today? The same comment on multiple threads - are YOU a bot or hairy hander?!

If you think it’s a troll, use the report button.

I’ve been in that situation. It was agonising. I didn’t know them and I didn’t know what to do. I still would not know, without making things worse

WTH!

No CCTV unfortunately.

I know what you mean. I was with my teen DD recently. We saw a woman dragging her young son by the arm along the rough stone floor of a shopping centre. She was remonstrating about how she was 'fed up, mate' and he was crying. I gave them a wry look and decided not to engage but I felt bad about it. I could totally see her side. I've been there with my DDs but I have never dragged my sobbing child by the arm scraping their trousers on the pavement (he wasn't walking) through a shopping centre.

In retrospect, I still wish I had tried to help just to give her a break - a minute to gather her thoughts. (I thought about the many threads on MN actually)

They were both at the end of their tethers. If she had let go of his arm, he would probably have been able to stand up and would have trotted along after her apologising.

I wish I'd done more. Anything to help. The more I think about it, it just seemed like such a normal thing to them at the time. Not one of the adults stood up and told them to stop. The child, bless their heart, just seemed to accept it too.