FreedomWorks is a small-government advocacy group led by former House Majority Leader Dick Armey that is trying to organize conservative activists and harness growing discontent with Democratic policies. It has lent support and organizational resources to tea party protests and town hall demonstrations opposing healthcare reform and other issues. While building its own membership, FreedomWorks is also trying to avoid appearing like it is trying to control the loosely organized conservative movement. Some observers worry large protests risk alienating moderates, while FreedomWorks aims to ride the wave of activism without being seen as its leader.

1. Chapter 20 Collective Behavior, Social Movements, and Social Change

25. Social Movement Theories Relative Deprivation People compare achievements, become discontent and join social movements to get their “fair share”. Resource Mobilization People participate in social movements when the movement has access to key resources.

26. Social Movement Theories New Social Movement Focus on sources of social movements, including politics, ideology, and culture. Social Construction Theory: Frame Analysis Used to determine how people assign meaning to activities and processes in social movements.

27. Social Movement Theories New Social Movement The focus is on sources of social movements, including politics, ideology, and culture. Race, class, gender, sexuality, and other sources of identity are also factors in movements such as ecofeminism and environmental justice.

29. Since its creation in 2004, FreedomWorks has championed conservative causes, from Social Security privatization to telecommunications deregulation. It lent its backing to the controversial payday-lending and tobacco industries. In February, when CNBC reporter Rick Santelli delivered an on-air angry tirade over government bailouts of troubled homeowners and announced a protest tea party, FreedomWorks staffers put together an "I am with Rick" Web site. FreedomWorks linked together would-be tea-party protesters and provided tips on everything from sound systems to news releases. Perhaps more importantly, FreedomWorks extended its liability-insurance policy to cover tea parties around the country, turning local events into FreedomWorks-branded ones, spokesman Adam Brandon says. "I'm brand new at this game," says Mary Rakovich, a former automotive engineer who turned to FreedomWorks to help put together an event in Cape Coral, Fla. The Sept. 12 Washington protest was set in motion earlier in 2009 when FreedomWorks officials applied for a march permit, choosing the date because it followed Congress's return from recess, according to Mr. Brandon. Glenn Beck, the Fox News television commentator, seized on the date -- the day after the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks -- as a symbol of what he called national unity and began promoting 9/12 demonstrations. (Fox is owned by News Corp., which also owns The Wall Street Journal.) The growing movement has turned off some high-profile conservative voices, such as former George W. Bush speechwriter David Frum, who worry that raucous displays and occasionally extreme language risk alienating moderates. And even as they ride the conservative wave, FreedomWorks officials worry about being seen as aspiring to control it. The movement has so far been reluctant to embrace a leader; many protesters seem deeply suspicious of those in authority. "We're all leaders," says Maryann Clements, a Tallahassee, Fla., office worker who rode a bus to Washington for last month's demonstrations. — Naftali Bendavid contributed to this article.

38. The Earth’s Supply of Potable Water

39. Quick Quiz