When the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto her platform in New York, she is not just considering what humor to deliver. She also carefully considers what subjects to avoid. “I refrain from openly criticizing the government,” she explained. Or if she ventures there, she ensures it's not recorded for online platforms. “I would never publish openly material where I directly criticize the government … I think this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to talks, protests, and delving into New York’s library system.
However over the past year after Donald Trump was elected again, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she says. “Back home, I knew the boundaries, whereas in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in the country, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The president expects total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. Following years of hope in the US that closer ties 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, rather than vice versa.
“America is experiencing an era of cultural revolution,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to rally the masses to sideline or undermine the elite … reminiscent of what happened in the country half a century ago.”
Since the administration unleashed the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on federal institutions at the start in office, many in China have viewed US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of the youth to execute presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without equivalent degrees of violence.
But since the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, a new, different kind of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on free speech.
A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. Deng resided in the US since 2019, after escaping the country due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people across the US – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing would occur in America – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash came from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but such of public monitoring bears similarities with the East.
“In terms of going after dissenters and starting to surveil public speech on topics deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is observed in China today as well,” she said, stating that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on educators, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to the US for ideals, since openly discussing internal affairs in China is risky. But now, “America isn't some kind of god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed the US as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has prompted comparisons with the East, where the line between state and business is often blurred.
On Monday, authorities stated it will take an investor in a new company focused on mineral refinement, following comparable shares in other companies it considers vital to national security. The deals have left certain stakeholders concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. Last month, several news organisations among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that required they only report on approved information. American judiciary have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in China’s party-dominated legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “The United States might face the worst crisis of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it will still be more free, open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang notes that although numerous scholars in China were surprised to see US universities yield to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, who are selected by the government, “cannot of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are starting to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters declined to speak for this piece. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of the censorship here: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
