As the standup comedian, a rising performer, takes her platform in New York, she's not only considering which jokes to tell. She also weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” she explained. Or if she does, she ensures it's not captured for social media. “I'd never publicly share material in which I openly disparage the government … I think it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”
Wang, 39, resided in Shanghai for nearly ten years, leaving in that year. By 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, protests, and delving into New York’s library system.
But in the year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, while here I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her fears mirror a new climate in the US which many Chinese, or people with experience in China, perceive as eerily familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The president expects total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the bonhomie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed governance models became clear. Following years of optimism in America that closer ties with the East may help the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears as if the US is shifting in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The president, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots to marginalize or undermine the elite … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions early on of his term, many in China have viewed American governance via the perspective of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of young people to execute the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered Mao-style chaos to the US, though without equivalent degrees of violence.
But since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump subsided, a new, different kind of climate has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, turned CCP critic, found himself in a controversy recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. Deng resided in the US since 2019, after escaping the country because of pressure from the authorities.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of making negative comments about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought such a thing could happen in America – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash came from online peers, rather than the government, but such of public monitoring also has similarities with China.
“Regarding targeting dissenters and starting to surveil public speech about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in China now as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of pupils informing against educators, a type of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to America for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in the country is dangerous. However, “America isn't some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. America’s image has declined across the board.”
“We used to see the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “the West, as represented by the United States, seems to be in decline.”
The Trump administration’s purchase of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with China, where the distinction between government and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, authorities announced it would become an investor in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in additional firms deemed essential for national security. These moves have made some investors concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that required they only report on government-authorised news. American judiciary have halted or reversed many of presidential measures, something that would be unthinkable in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States might face its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor observes that although numerous scholars in the country were shocked to see US universities capitulate to government demands regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are all state-owned by default. Administrators, who are appointed by the government, “cannot refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Still, people in the US are starting to adopt measures that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at an American college once vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression in the US: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
