The first definition I learned of democracy was ,'the government of the people, by the people , and for the people'. This definition was taken from Abraham Lincoln's speech while addressing the matter of democracy. Unlike dictatorship and anarchy kind of government, democratic government was set to offer people a voice and to give us certain freedom to make decisions.
Democratic government may not be as portrayed, but it gives a little level of liberty and refrain people in power to take certain decisions. It gives us the feeling of being active in the voting process and allow us enjoy certain human rights. Democratic leadership may have deviated from its core purpose, but we've been able to bring the government to the people. People could freely protest for change, and there are other agencies that tries to moderate what the government do. This is possible only through democratic leadership.
On the other hand are some disadvantages of democracy. The decision making process is slow, it'll need to go through a certain channel of confirmation before it's approved. Decisions are made by a few people to represent the general public and the distribution of power among individuals makes it difficult to control all sectors.
Democracy, they say, is the government of the people, by the people, and for the people, but as long as power exists, it's often dictatorship in democratic clothing, and democratic kind of government has made it easy for people to disguise dictatorship and anarchy.