Protective clothing or a lining for protection against the effects of impacts, blows, gunshots or the like, includes an inner side facing the person wearing it and an outer side facing away from the object, wherein the outer side consists of at least one layer of a non-tear material while the inner side consists of an elastic, self-supporting, repetitive geometrical structure. The structure is covered on the top by the layer of non-tear material and is open at the bottom, the structure forming a continuous system of air chambers which are closed from one another by side walls.