"Buy BTS Backpacks and Pencil Cases" - Selling Like Hotcakes Every Time There Is a School Shooting in the US

Active Marketing of Protective Gear Amid US School Shootings
230 Incidents in 230 US Schools Over 10 Years
Fear Marketing Targeting Parents and Students Continues
"Expensive but Effectiveness Not Guaranteed"

There is a product that sells like hotcakes every time a school shooting occurs in the United States. These are bulletproof backpacks, pencil cases, hoodies, and other items actively promoted by bulletproof equipment companies to parents and students. The companies claim that bulletproof features are incorporated into items primarily used by students, but there are criticisms that the actual effectiveness is unclear and that this is 'fear marketing' exploiting anxiety to make money.

The New York Times (NYT) recently reported that over the past decade, as shootings have occurred at more than 230 schools across the U.S., bulletproof technology has been integrated into everyday items used by students. Earlier this month, a shooting at a high school near Atlanta, Georgia, shocked the nation with 13 casualties. Amid such circumstances, various bulletproof products for students have been developed, and a booth displaying bulletproof backpacks was featured at a recent education-related trade fair, drawing attention.

Bulletproof bag promoted by Atomic Defense, a manufacturer of bulletproof equipment (Photo source: product sales website)

Bulletproof backpacks are considered a representative product of fear marketing. Since these items are used by young children, they are decorated with adorable characters like unicorns and dinosaurs or bright colors. Atomic Defense, a bulletproof equipment manufacturer, described them as an "exclusive art collection that captures children's attention," claiming they can protect against pistols as well as AR-15 and AK-47 rifles.

Companies also promoted bulletproof clipboards used by teachers and binders (files) for students' class materials. These are intended to be used as shields to protect the body during a shooting. Additionally, they introduced bulletproof features in very small pencil cases and hoodies, which are being purchased directly. The NYT evaluated that the promotion suggests these everyday items will have blockbuster movie-like effects in stopping gunfire.

At the same time, desks in classrooms have been equipped with separate levers to raise the desk surface vertically so students can hide behind them, and bulletproof whiteboards have also been developed. Related companies claimed to have conducted tests with AR-15 machine guns and grenades, and created promotional videos showing students hiding behind these items. Some U.S. schools have installed foldable panels in classrooms that can be pulled out during shootings to create a kind of bulletproof protective space, spending tens of thousands of dollars on installation.

The problem is whether these products can actually be effective. Kenneth Trump, a school safety consultant active nationwide, told the NYT, "If you have a bulletproof backpack, wouldn't you also need a helmet or Captain America's shield?" He pointed out, "Above all, hanging the backpack at the back of the classroom won't be of much help."

Manufacturers promote that they have received official technical certification from the federal agency, the U.S. Department of Justice Research Institute, but the institute has stated that such claims are "false." Apart from bulletproof vests used directly by law enforcement, the agency has never conducted tests or certifications on bulletproof products.

Even without guaranteed effectiveness, fearful parents are opening their wallets for their children's safety. Bulletproof backpacks are priced at $300 (about 400,000 KRW), bulletproof hoodies at $450, and pencil cases at $185, all set at high prices. Steve Naremore, president of TuffyPacks, a bulletproof product seller, defended, "People criticize us for 'profiting from massacres,' but it's just like a fire extinguisher manufacturer." He added that tens of thousands of products were sold within a week following the Uvalde elementary school shooting in Texas in May 2022.

In response, Randy Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, expressed deep frustration, saying, "We are faced with a situation where fear is being monetized instead of courageously addressing school shootings," and lamented, "Arm us with books and counselors, not bulletproof vests."