Prologue: Dreaming of a world where everyone is equal and happy

01 Life's Gifts Learned from Hard Times

Hope is on the side of those who have nothing but hope.
Soft on the inside but hard on the outside like steel
A special promise with a college friend
Truth is stronger than lies.
Times filled with the warmth of public sentiment

02 Towards a path where we can laugh together

Let's move the room to the lowest place.
There is a path in people
It's time to rediscover the true value of conservatism.
Meeting people's hearts in an alleyway
The fifth dream I have
For those who have lost their smiles

03 The driving force behind the courage that overcame the lonely and difficult fight

Life's trials become the foundation for growth.
Things we can change when we work together
The civil movement that made me cry three times
Oppress the strong and help the weak
A revolution for the 99 percent

04 A blueprint for a society where everyone is equal

Be honest like a servant, be diligent like a housekeeper
Now is the time to fight together for happiness
A country where everyone can smile brightly
Things I realized while participating in the civil movement
Our generation must break the chains of history.
Dreaming of a happy society where we all live well together

Epilogue: Valuable Assets Learned on the Frontier

Knowing the end of despair, I dreamed of hope more desperately.
Lee Jae-myung's life story

A commemorative reissue edition of the 21st President Lee Jae-myung's first autobiographical essay, "The Road We Walk Together Is Not Lonely."
It was a poor and difficult life, but because I had nothing, I dreamed of hope even more desperately.
Having chosen the path of a human rights lawyer, he faced numerous crises while participating in civil movements, including being wanted, arrested, and framed.
However, he was encouraged by the voices of the citizens who supported him and decided to work as their servant.
And by listening carefully to the wishes of ordinary people we meet in low places, we are striving to create a fair society that guarantees the happiness of all citizens.
In this book, he sincerely states, “My dream is the dream of all families who deserve to live well in proportion to their hard work,” and “I will fill the rest of my life with putting that dream into practice.”

From a juvenile delinquent in Seongnam City to a human rights lawyer
Lee Jae-myung's Path

Lee Jae-myung, who resisted whenever he encountered something wrong, both before and after entering politics, says he is fearless.
His unstoppable pace was possible because he had a childhood where he had to experience things from the bottom.
As soon as he graduated from elementary school, he had to work in a factory and endure frequent beatings from seniors and managers. He lost his freedom in poverty and hunger, and his left arm became disabled when it got caught in a machine.
After two suicide attempts, the realization he came to was, 'Let's live with all our might.'
At the end of his ordeal, all he had left was his bare hands and hope, but he did not give up and passed the high school qualification exam, entered college, and even passed the bar exam, taking a step towards his dream.

The opportunity that opened his eyes to society came while participating in a club activity at the Judicial Research and Training Institute.
In the late 1980s, when the democratization movement was at its peak, he wanted to fight against unjust public power and become a representative of the suffering people. After hearing a lecture by the late President Roh Moo-hyun, he decided to become a human rights lawyer and opened a law firm in Seongnam City.
Afterwards, I actively participated in the 'Seongnam Citizens' Association' (Seongnam Participation Solidarity), learned about the grassroots democracy of local autonomy on the ground, and began to dream a new dream of 'turning an unreasonable society into a society where common sense prevails.'
While participating in large-scale civic movements such as the 'Seongnam City Southern Oil Depot Construction Opposition Movement', the 'Parkview Preferential Sale Incident Truth Finding,' and the 'Seongnam City Medical Center 100,000 Signature Campaign', he faced various ordeals such as slander, threats, and arrests, but he did not give in and pushed forward with his dream to the end.
His strength to make his dreams come true came from a life of ups and downs where hope was a necessity for survival rather than a choice.


Believe in the power of the people
Lee Jae-myung's Philosophy: Winning a Lonely Fight

Lee Jae-myung, who experienced two defeats before being elected mayor of Seongnam, used these experiences as valuable assets.
He says that by listening to the most common and sensible wishes of ordinary people while campaigning, he was able to break free from the arrogance of vested interest politicians who interpret "public sentiment" as votes.
The first thing he did after being elected mayor of Seongnam was to open the mayor's office.
He set up a 'time to talk with the market' and went around each region of Seongnam City to listen to citizens' complaints directly and reflect them in city administration.
We have also been trying to utilize social media to listen to citizens' diverse thoughts, share information, and communicate.
From this point on, politician Lee Jae-myung's lonely fight became a fight 'together' with the citizens.
His determination to achieve anything was possible because of the strength of the citizens who joined him.


Meanwhile, political forces that consider themselves vested interests have been endlessly searching for scapegoats and engaging in all kinds of corruption and injustice, including the 'hunting of pro-North Korea people.'
Lee Jae-myung also became a victim of the 'movement to oust pro-North Korean mayors' due to the National Intelligence Service's conspiracy.
He revealed the whole story of the incident and frankly confessed the feud with his third older brother that was known to the world.
He launched a cool counterattack against the absurd conspiracy, and the 'Finger Revolutionary Army' simultaneously shared messages on social media, and the public sympathized, ending the 'hunting for pro-North Korea'.
He says that he feels a heavy sense of mission as he earned the nickname 'Cider' during this process.
He also solemnly accepted the fact that in order to become a politician worthy of his nickname, he must understand what the people thirst for most and make efforts to resolve that issue as a top priority.
And he confidently says that we must look at the world with an attitude of bowing down to the people's eye level at every moment.


If the moment comes when you have to fight to keep your promise
Lee Jae-myung's sincerity in wanting to become a willing fighter

To resolve the debt-ridden Seongnam City due to the previous mayor's show-off administration, Mayor Lee Jae-myung declared a moratorium.
While restructuring various businesses and reviewing budgets, we also reduced unnecessary administrative waste one by one.
As a result, he was able to pay off his debts in just three years and six months after taking office as mayor of Seongnam in 2010, and secure a welfare budget for citizens struggling in the shadows.
He demonstrated that this process could eliminate corruption, reduce waste, and stabilize local government finances by ensuring fair tax collection.
It is the job of politicians to break with convention and practice and ensure that taxes are used appropriately so that the people can equally benefit. However, politicians representing Korea's privileged class are implementing tax cut policies for conglomerates under the pretext of revitalizing the economy.
He ran for president, enraged by the reality that the benefits that were supposed to go to the common people were disappearing while collusion between politics and business and corruption were rampant.

Lee Jae-myung said, “I know that my family’s life is not much different from the lives of the vast majority of ordinary citizens in South Korea.
“I see the faces of my family in the faces of countless ordinary people who endure each day, suppressing the anger and resentment that boils over in an unfair social structure,” he says.
That is why I sincerely convey my feelings through this book, saying, “The dream of all families who deserve to live well in proportion to their hard work is my dream, and the rest of my life will be filled with putting that dream into practice.”