An Israeli company that designs military-grade vests, uniforms, and helmets says it has developed a bulletproof backpack for school kids. Orders from America are pouring in.
Interest in Masada Armour’s backpack cropped up after a mass shooting in February at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Since then, the company has increased production to more than 500 backpacks per month, according to Agence France-Presse.
“The backpack is designed for regular student use,” of carrying books, a laptop and the like, according to the company’s website. It weighs less than 3kg (6.5lbs) and costs about $700. It can withstand the force of bullets fired from high-velocity rifles, including the AK-47, AR-15, and M-16. The company says it can offer an even stronger backpack by adding ballistic hard plates.
It’s is a sobering reflection of the state of gun violence in America that market demand would push the company to design the backpack at all. The US’s firearm death rate that far exceeds other wealthy countries around the world.
Requests for the backpack come as US Education Department secretary Betsy Devos said publicly that she would allow US states to use federal funds to purchase guns for protecting schools. That news rippled through Congress, disappointing some lawmakers who argue that arming teachers is the wrong way to address America’s problem with school shootings.
Right now, Masada Armour says its backpacks are heavy, but suitable for college students. The firm, which is located in the northern town of Julis, says it is currently working on designing a lighter backpack for the “type of morphology” of an elementary school kid.