As the standup comedian, a rising performer, takes the stage in New York, she is not just considering what humor to deliver. She also carefully considers what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in openly attacking the administration,” she explained. Or if she ventures there, she makes certain it's not captured for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share content in which I openly disparage authorities … I think this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”
Wang, 39, lived in Shanghai for nearly a decade, departing in that year. By 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” attending talks, protests, and exploring the city's public library.
However in the year since the president was elected for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, while here I find myself on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears reflect an emerging political reality in America which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, perceive as eerily similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader demands total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
The president has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in America that closer ties with China could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears that America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of vice versa.
“America is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to rally the masses to marginalize or undermine established figures … similar to what happened in China half a century ago.”
Ever since Trump initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the rallying of young people to execute presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of those deemed opposition, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to America, though absent equivalent degrees of force.
However since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which in different ways seems familiar to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, the likes of which he once faced in China. Deng has lived in the US since 2019, after escaping China due to harassment from the authorities.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – who were fired for expressing criticism about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing could happen in America – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” he commented.
His pile on originated from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of social surveillance also has similarities with China.
“Regarding going after dissenters and monitoring public speech on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted an academic, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in China now as too,” she added, stating that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a type of monitoring that has been encouraged by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers like himself once turned to America for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in China is risky. However, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”
“We used to see the US as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, Zhang said. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by the United States, appear declining.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of stakes in American firms has prompted parallels with the East, where the distinction between state and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities stated it would become an investor in a startup focused on rare earth processing, following similar stakes in additional firms it considers vital to the country's safety. These moves have made some investors concerned that America is entering a new era of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. In October, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that required they only report on government-authorised information. US courts have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, commented: “The United States might face the worst crisis of its history, far more severe than currently, and it will still be freer, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor observes that although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to government demands regarding DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are selected by the state, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not defy orders.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to adopt measures previously confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university who was previously outspoken on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I fear of the censorship in the US: I actually feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
