Democracy hasn't retreated or gone anywhere, but it hasn't been revived in a long
time either.
Long before the mask and vaccine mandates and restrictions there was the post 9/11 airport security people had tolerated because they decided they valued safety over personal
freedom and rights. Kids born after the year 2000 might not even have much sense of democracy or personal
freedom, since they'
ve only known the airport security and travel bans since 9/11 and the pandemic, respectively. These folks are used to accepting what they see and hear in the news perhaps, and doing what they are told by authorities rather than questioning whether the authorities know what they are talking about.
Kids born after 2000, if they have any sense of democracy at all, must
think it isn't something they might have to wake up and
fight/bleed to keep.