An American History

GLOSSARY ★ A-53

into small farms for Indian families, with

the remainder sold to white purchasers.

D- Day June 6, 1944, when an Allied

amphibious assault landed on the Nor-

mandy coast and established a foothold in

Europe, leading to the liberation of France

from German occupation.

Declaration of Independence Docu-

ment adopted on July 4, 1776, that made

the break with Britain official; drafted

by a committee of the Second Continen-

tal Congress, including principal writer

Thomas Jefferson.

decolonization The process by which

African and Asian colonies of European

empires became independent in the years

following World War II.

Defense of Marriage Act 1996 law that

barred gay couples from receiving federal

benefits. Ruled unconstitutional in 2013.

deindustrialization Term describing

decline of manufacturing in old industrial

areas in the late twentieth century as compa-

nies shifted production to low- wage centers

in the South and West or in other countries.

Deism Enlightenment thought applied

to religion; emphasized reason, morality,

and natural law.

Democracy in America Two works, pub-

lished in 1835 and 1840, by the French

thinker Alexis de Tocqueville on the sub-

ject of American democracy. Tocqueville

stressed the cultural nature of American

democracy, and the importance and prev-

alence of equality in American life.

Democratic- Republican societies Orga-

nizations created in the mid- 1790s by

opponents of the policies of the Washing-

ton administration and supporters of the

French Revolution.

Denmark Vesey’s conspiracy An 1822

failed slave uprising in Charleston, South

Carolina, purported to have been led by

Denmark Vesey, a free black man.

deregulation Reagan- Clinton era legisla-

tion that removed regulations on many

legal identity, which became “covered” by
that of her husband, who therefore con-
trolled her person and the family’s eco-
nomic resources.
Coxey’s Army A march on Washing-
ton organized by Jacob Coxey, an Ohio
member of the People’s Party. Coxey
believed in abandoning the gold stan-
dard and printing enough legal tender to
reinvigorate the economy. The marchers
demanded that Congress create jobs and
pay workers in paper currency not backed
by gold.
creoles Persons born in the New World of
European ancestry.
crop lien Credit extended by merchants
to tenants based on their future crops;
under this system, high interest rates and
the uncertainties of farming often led to
inescapable debts.
Cuban missile crisis Tense confron-
tation caused when the United States
discovered Soviet offensive missile sites
in Cuba in October 1962; the U.S.-Soviet
confrontation was the Cold War’s closest
brush with nuclear war.
cult of domesticity The nineteenth-
century ideology of “virtue” and “mod-
esty” as the qualities that were essential to
proper womanhood.
Culture Wars Battles over moral val-
ues that occurred throughout the 1990s.
The Culture Wars touched many areas of
American life— from popular culture to
academia. Flashpoints included the future
of the nuclear family and the teaching of
evolution.
Dartmouth College v. Woodward 1819
U.S. Supreme Court case in which the
Court upheld the original charter of the
college against New Hampshire’s attempt
to alter the board of trustees; set the prec-
edent of support of contracts against state
interference.
Dawes Act Law passed in 1887 meant
to encourage adoption of white norms
among Indians; broke up tribal holdings