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I am 62 years old. I was born right after the McCarthy era. I lived through the Cold War and nuclear scares. I lived through Vietnam protesting, the 1968 Democratic Convention and Watergate.

Right now I believe we are in a crucial period. I believe democracy itself is under attack and that people need to speak out. Some of it is so subtle that most Americans don't even realize that it's happening.

President Donald Trump is one of the big dangers. Whether he likes it or not, the American people get to know what he is doing. And not everyone gets their news from Twitter. But Trump is not the only issue.

A study of students a few years ago showed many college students thought there should be more limits to First Amendment rights. We are letting fears of terrorism give more power to government and law enforcement. The internet allows people to get slanted news from websites that offer only viewpoints they want to read and hear.

Maybe I'm being overly panicky. Maybe American democracy is too strong for my worries to overthrow it. But I think it's time for important people to speak up for democracy, and the news media is still the best way to spread the word. The McCarthy era and J. Edgar Hoover should be a warning that democracy is neither free not automatic. We sometimes need to fight for it.

Laurence Siegel, Manteno

More here:
Our democracy is in trouble. It's time to fight. - Chicago Tribune