Sean Parlaman

Last updated February 21, 2019

Griffith Simmons Parlaman III (30 October 1958 – 23 November 2002), who often referred to himself as "Sean Parlaman", was a long-time college student and trafficking activist who, before his curious and unexpected death, sought to raise awareness regarding the trafficking and prostitution of children into Thailand. Parlaman was born in Los Angeles County, California, to Griffith Mead Parlaman (20 April 1923 – 22 October 1991) and Doris V. Simmons Parlaman (22 November 1923 – 11 February 2007); he fell to his death in Jomtien, Pattaya, Thailand. Parlaman created websites to represent his projects, such as the now-defunct capcat.org.^[1]

California is a state in the Pacific Region of the United States. With 39.6 million residents, California is the most populous U.S. state and the third-largest by area. The state capital is Sacramento. The Greater Los Angeles Area and the San Francisco Bay Area are the nation's second- and fifth-most populous urban regions, with 18.7 million and 8.8 million residents respectively. Los Angeles is California's most populous city, and the country's second-most populous, after New York City. California also has the nation's most populous county, Los Angeles County, and its largest county by area, San Bernardino County. The City and County of San Francisco is both the country's second-most densely populated major city after New York City and the fifth-most densely populated county, behind only four of the five New York City boroughs.

Pattaya is a resort city in Thailand. It is on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) southeast of Bangkok, within, but not part of, Bang Lamung District in the province of Chonburi. Pattaya City is a self-governing municipal area which covers tambons Nong Prue and Na Klua and parts of Huai Yai and Nong Pla Lai. The city is in the industrial Eastern Seaboard zone, along with Si Racha, Laem Chabang, and Chonburi. Pattaya is at the center of the Pattaya-Chonburi Metropolitan Area—a conurbation in Chonburi Province—with a population of roughly 1,000,000.

Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and formerly known as Siam, is a country at the center of the Southeast Asian Indochinese peninsula composed of 76 provinces. At 513,120 km² (198,120 sq mi) and over 68 million people, Thailand is the world's 50th largest country by total area and the 21st-most-populous country. The capital and largest city is Bangkok, a special administrative area. Thailand is bordered to the north by Myanmar and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and the southern extremity of Myanmar. Its maritime boundaries include Vietnam in the Gulf of Thailand to the southeast, and Indonesia and India on the Andaman Sea to the southwest. Although nominally a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy, the most recent coup in 2014 established a de facto military dictatorship.

Beginnings

During his time in college he was able to secure government grants, to become a member of the Oregon steering committee of the 2000 Green Party Presidential campaign of Ralph Nader, and to get permission from Stephen King to make Stud City, a short, independent sequel to Stand by Me .

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region on the West Coast of the United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. The parallel 42° north delineates the southern boundary with California and Nevada. Oregon is one of only three states of the contiguous United States to have a coastline on the Pacific Ocean.

The Green Party of the United States (GPUS) is a green federation of political parties in the United States. The party promotes green politics, specifically environmentalism; nonviolence; social justice; participatory, grassroots democracy; gender equality; LGBT rights; anti-war and anti-racism. On the political spectrum, the party is generally seen as left-wing.

Activism

Mr. Parlaman moved to Thailand and continued his activism. For example, Mr. Parlaman wrote: "At an age when we would regard them as still being children, over a thousand young girls from northern Thailand are being lured every year into prostitution. Girls, as young as 10, are being sold to the brothels of Bangkok, other Thai cities and overseas." However, despite his efforts to raise awareness of local establishments' engaging in child prostitution, he was accused by those same institutions of being a pedophile himself, as was a common retaliatory tactic to quickly eliminate pesky activists. On 30 September 2002, living in Thailand, Parlaman was charged with molesting a 12-year-old boy, but released on bail by the local magistrate due to lack of evidence, as the sole incriminating evidence against him was a bruise on the boy's neck.^[2] On 23 November, after another accusation, Parlaman was to accompany police officers to their station for further questioning. Instead, he jumped, fell, or was thrown to the street from his apartment building in the city of Pattaya, thereby closing the applicable case. Mr. Parlaman was pronounced dead on the scene.^[3]

Controversies

Sean Parlaman had a feud with Don't! Buy! Thai! accusing their campaigners of being fundamentalist Christians, right-wing bigots, and pedophiles. Don't! Buy! Thai! was a campaign initiated in the early 1990s by child welfare advocate and author Andrew Vachss to boycott goods and services produced in Thailand until its government introduced formal and practical reforms to significantly curtail the prostitution of children.

Don't! Buy! Thai! was a campaign initiated in the early 1990s by child welfare advocate and author Andrew Vachss to boycott goods and services produced in Thailand until its government introduced formal and practical reforms to significantly curtail the prostitution of children.

Andrew Henry Vachss is an American crime fiction author, child protection consultant, and attorney exclusively representing children and youths.

Reactions to death

Before moving to Thailand, he was a resident of Ashland, Oregon and an avid supporter of high school athletics. Joel Smith, a First Team All-State Linebacker on the high school football team that won the 1998 OSAA 4A State Championship team, is quoted as saying, in response to his death, that "his commitment to the community and unselfishness in public service is a beacon of light in Southern Oregon and, in my mind, remain unrivaled to this day. It cannot be exaggerated how much he will be missed by those who knew him best."

Karen Money Williams, writer, editor, and longtime friend in Ashland adds: "Sean had a quick wit, a huge heart, and a rare knowledge of contemporary culture--especially cinema and politics. To be in his presence was a joy, an inspiration, and a challenge to explore the world with gusto."

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