As the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, steps onto her platform in New York, she's not just thinking about what humor to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the administration,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I would never publicly share content where I directly criticize authorities … I believe this is a habit from China.”
Wang, thirty-nine, lived in Shanghai for almost a decade, departing in that year. By 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending lectures, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s public library.
But over the past year since the president returned to office for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I understood where the line was, while here I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her concerns mirror a new climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, find eerily familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The leader demands absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called him as a “great guy”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with vastly different political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in America that improved relations with China may help the rising power to liberalise, under Trump 2.0, it seems as if America is being pulled in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to sideline or undermine the elite … similar to events in China decades past.”
Ever since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start in office, many in China have viewed US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to execute presidential directives, or cleansing institutions of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, albeit absent the same levels of force.
However after the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the US, which variously seems familiar to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng has lived in the US for several years, having fled China because of pressure from officials.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – who were fired for expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in America – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.
Deng’s backlash originated from online peers, instead of the state, but such of social surveillance also has parallels with China.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and monitoring open discourse about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “This is observed in China now as too,” she said, stating that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself once turned to the US for political inspiration, since openly discussing internal affairs in China is dangerous. However, “America is no longer some kind of ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, behind closed doors, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than America’s, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by America, seems to be declining.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of shares in American firms has prompted parallels with China, where the distinction between government and business is often blurred.
Recently, authorities announced it will take an investor in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, following comparable shares in other companies deemed essential for national security. These moves have made certain stakeholders concerned that the US is entering a new era of government meddling in private industry.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on approved information. American judiciary have blocked or reversed many of Trump’s actions, something that would be unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States might face its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it will still be freer, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang observes that while many intellectuals in the country were shocked to see American colleges yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are beginning to take precautions that were once associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to speak for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I fear of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
