Democracies are under attack in many countries including our own. Wannabe dictators feel threatened by democracies' existence. Their destructive efforts are abetted by democracies' citizen apathy. This book examines the institutions, the "columns" that support democracy. They include such institutions as independent media, K-12 and higher education, respected, independent judges, accessible voting systems, and public libraries. These institutions support both an active citizenry and meaningful checks on executives' abuses. This book calls Americans to action - with suggestions. It also contains the author's "columns" - an example of citizen use of the column of democracy called media.