When the standup comedian, an emerging performer, steps onto her platform in New York, she is not just thinking about what humor to tell. Additionally, she weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly criticizing the government,” she stated. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I would never publish openly material in which I directly criticize authorities … I think this is a habit acquired back home.”
Wang, 39, resided in Shanghai for nearly a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she moved to America. When she got there, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to talks, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s public library.
But over the past year after Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I knew the boundaries, while in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Her concerns mirror an emerging political reality in America which many Chinese, or people who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The president expects total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Establishments are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems was evident. Following years of hope in America that closer ties with China could assist the rising power become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems that America is being pulled in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” said a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in the country half a century ago.”
Since the administration initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on federal institutions early on of his term, many in China see US politics via the perspective of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of the youth to carry out the leader’s will, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though absent the same levels of violence.
However since the upheaval of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the crackdown on free speech.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. He has lived in the US since 2019, having fled the country because of harassment from the authorities.
Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – who were fired as a result of expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage seeking to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in the United States – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” he commented.
His backlash originated from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring bears parallels with the East.
“Regarding going after dissenters and starting to surveil public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in China today as too,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against teachers, a form of monitoring that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to America for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in China is risky. But now, “The US is no longer a ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide appears less luminous”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by the United States, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in US companies has prompted parallels with China, where the distinction between state and business is frequently unclear.
Recently, the US government announced it will take an investor in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, following similar stakes in other companies it considers essential for the country's safety. These moves have made certain stakeholders nervous that America is embarking on a new era of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain major differences between Trump’s America and China. Last month, several news organisations including the Guardian refused to sign to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on government-authorised information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, something that is unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America might face its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang observes that while numerous scholars in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters refused to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
