A Generation of Terror

The 1970s FALN Bombings of NYC: A Case Study

Since the group's inception in the early 1970s, the FALN (Armed Forces of National Liberation) embarked on a terror campaign, bombing bars, banks, department stores, and businesses in New York City, Chicago, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. Over 120 bombs were claimed by the FALN, placing the group's leadership on the FBI's Most Wanted. 

But beyond the smoke and chaos, a question rises: who were the FALN? Where did they come from, both literally and ideologically? A Generation of Terror aims to present a quantitative and qualitative response to that question. Using census data, geolocation, primary sources, and scholarly literature, this exhibit presents a clearer understanding of who the members of the FALN were and why they undertook their campaign of armed revolutionary action.

On Sources

The body text of each part in the exhibit paraphrases content from a series of primary and secondary sources. All primary sources used here are linked in the exhibit proper, while secondary sources are cited at the end of the exhibit in Chicago style format.