Taopiphop Limjittrakorn’s revolution started with a cold brew denied. Now he’s running for Parliament. Democracy is returning to Thailand for the first time since the 2014 military-led coup. Joining the lineup of political stalwarts and proxy appendages for the military junta ahead of elections this Sunday is Future Forward, a boldly progressive, social-media-savvy party founded by a billionaire. Among its legion of new faces is an outlaw. He’s not an exiled member of the political elite or a shamed member of the royal family, though. He’s a 30-year-old former lawyer who was busted for making craft beer. Taopiphop Limjittrakorn, or Tao, is in many ways a typical millennial. Tall and affable, he loves internet memes and ’90s pop culture references. After earning a law degree from Thammasat University, Tao worked for a big Thai conglomerate for two and a half years, which, he says, took a toll on his soul. “I didn’t like it. I quit because I was taking land from poor people,” Tao says. After bailing on his law career, he made ends meet as a tour guide and spent most of his free time on his singular focus: making and drinking good beer. Until, that is, he was tapped by the Future Forward Party last year to run for Parliament. |