Children going to school or public places should be given bulletproof backpacks, the CEO of self-defence brand Guard Dog has told Dezeen.
Yasir Sheikh said parents should consider buying the products in the wake of the shootings in El Paso and Dayton last week, in which a total of 31 people died.
"We don't necessarily like when parents and children are thinking about carrying a bulletproof backpack after some tragedy, but safety now is part of the process of going to school or going to a public place," said Sheikh, who heads the Florida-based company that makes a range of protective backpacks called Proshield.
The products are advertised as being designed for a "student's everyday carry". They look like a regular backpack with a laptop sleeve and organisational pockets, yet provide protection from high-calibre weapons.
Guard Dog intends parents to purchase the backpack for their children as a proactive preventative measure in light of the relaxed gun laws in the US.
"We encourage people to think proactively today," Sheikh told Dezeen. "We want them to think about safety and protection on a proactive level, not on a reactive level."
"Just like people would have home security systems for their house if there was a series of robberies, we also think people should start thinking about a bulletproof backpack if there is a series of shootings," Sheikh added.

According to Sheikh, the backpacks protect against 9mm and .44 Magnum ...