A mother shares “what it’s like to be a mom in America” and how she fears for her son’s life every time she drops him off at school.
Jaime Hyde, 31, from Nebraska, went viral TikTok after describing the precautions she’s taking to try and keep her first-grader safe in the event of a mass shooting, she said she’s adding a “bulletproof insert” to his back-to-school shopping list this year.
“I started taking a picture of my son every day before school because I want to make sure in case of a school shooting I know for sure what he was wearing to school that day,” she said at the beginning of her emotional video.
The mother of one went on to tell how she told her son to ignore his teacher’s directions and make sure he was always last in line when the fire alarm went off.
Jaime Hyde, 31, from Nebraska, went viral on TikTok after describing the precautions she’s taking to try and keep her grade school safe in the event of a mass shooting
The mom shared that she takes a picture of her son every morning so she knows exactly what he’s wearing if there’s ever a shooting at his school
Hyde told her son to always be last in line when the fire alarm is triggered in case there is an active shooter. She also won’t buy him glowing shoes because they make it harder for him to hide
“Statistically, an active shooter is more likely to raise the alarm to lure the kids out than an actual fire,” she explains.
She also refuses to buy her son light-up shoes “because he can’t hide in a closet when the shoes light up.”
“I’m adding a bulletproof insert to my kid’s backpack for his school supplies list for next year,” she added, her voice trembling as she tried not to cry. “Meanwhile, people are more concerned about the Second Amendment than about my upcoming second grader.
“And yet my son is expected every day to put his hand on his heart and swear allegiance to a country that doesn’t care if he’s safe in school.
“If you’re still saying this is the best country in the world, I don’t know who you’re trying to fool right now,” she added.
Hyde posted the video on March 31, just days after the mass shooting at The Covenant School, a private Christian elementary school in Nashville, Tennessee.
The gunman, identified as 28-year-old Audrey Elizabeth Hale, shot and killed six people: three adults and three nine-year-old college students. Hale was killed at the scene by officers.
The minute-long clip of the mother has been viewed 4.2 million times and received more than 22,000 comments from people around the world.
“I’m adding a bulletproof insert to my kid’s backpack for his school supplies list next year,” she added, her voice trembling as she tried not to cry
The minute-long clip of the mother has been viewed 4.2 million times and received more than 22,000 comments from people around the world
“I looked at bulletproof backpacks and I cried when I saw the unicorn and dinosaur prints. Why do these young children need these’, one mother asked.
“I’m enrolling my son in kindergarten for fall next week… I have panic attacks every night when I think about it. I’m soooo scared,” shared another.
“I’m an Australian mum and my heart breaks for all of you,” added another. ‘This is horrible. I can’t imagine sending my kids to school with this out of fear.’
There will have been at least 164 mass shootings in the US in 2023, according to the Gun Violence Archives.
Figures from the Institute for Health Metrics and evaluation data for 2019 show that gun deaths in the US are 22 times higher than in the European Union and 23 times higher than in Australia.
Mass shootings are rare in other high-income countries where gun reform laws have been passed, but there were still commentators who insisted guns aren’t the problem.
Hyde filmed a follow-up video in response to a commenter claiming “evil.” people who want to do harm will use bombs if they cannot use weapons.’
Hyde filmed a follow-up video in response to those who argue gun laws don’t help because people are simply breaking the law. “Then why do we have laws?” she asked
“People will always break the laws, but if we make rules and laws around (guns) it will stop at least some of it,” she explained
“They don’t use bombs. They use guns,’ the mother hit back. “I get really tired of people saying they just do it. (If) people want to do something illegal, they just do it. Then why do we have laws?
“Why are we banning abortions and cross-dressing shows and transaffirmative care and book(s) drugs? Why do we have laws at all?’ she continued. “People will always break the laws, but if we make rules and laws around (guns) it will stop at least some of it.”
The mother noted that “in America your child is more likely to die from a gun than from anything else.”
Guns are the leading cause of death among American children under the age of 19, according to an article published in the New England Journal of Medicine last year.
For decades, car accidents were the leading cause of death among the age group, but that changed in 2020. More than 4,300 children ages 1 to 19 died from a gun injury during the first year of the pandemic — an increase of nearly 30 percent from 2019 .
“You know what we did when we realized our kids were more likely to die in a car accident than anything else? We legislated,” she explained. “Fifty years ago your child could ride in the front seat in a glorified shopping basket, and now we have five-point harnesses.”
Hyde added that regulations on child seats in cars “are becoming stricter and stricter every year as new technology and information becomes available.
“I’m really tired of people saying, ‘We can’t make gun regulation because criminals will still break the law.’ OK, what? Then why do we have laws at all? Just some food for thought,’ she concluded.
