A video posted online shows the moment a guard at the Tower of London – a landmark in the UK capital – crashes into a black child while marching, knocking him to the ground
In the footage, uploaded to TikTok earlier this week, two royal guards stationed at the Tower of London can be seen marching across the Tower Green. While the small crowd makes way for the guards, one boy remains in the soldiers’ path.
Shortly before crashing into the boy, one of the guards shouts “make way!” The boy fails to remove himself. The guard knocks him to the ground and makes an ungainly attempt to step over him.
The child quickly gets to his feet and appears to be fine.
@user7312510220627 Nobody is safe 😢 #england#royalguards#foryou#foryoupage#london♬ original sound – user7312510220627
The caption reading “My sister went to england: first day in (crying face emoji)” suggests that the boy and his family were on holiday in the UK.
The video provoked uproar among some who were unimpressed by the guard’s lack of compassion for the boy. Others said he was just doing his job. Some people on social media even blamed the parents.
The Historic Royal Places website says that visitors to the Tower of London “are advised to be respectful and stand clear when the guards are marching and performing their official duties.”
While many see them as a tourist attraction, the guards are serving infantry troops and are stationed at the castle to protect the crown jewels and the royal palace, although it has not been used as a royal residence for centuries. It has more recently served as a jail and zoo.
The Ministry of Defense (MOD) said that they were aware of the incident and that the guard in question had returned to check on the boy.
“The Guardsmen on duty warned members of the public that a patrol was approaching but the child unfortunately ran out in front of the soldier unexpectedly. The soldier tried to step over the child and continued on his duty,” the MOD added.
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