As Vickie Wang, an emerging comedic talent, takes the stage in New York, she's not just thinking about what humor to tell. She also carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I don't engage in directly attacking the administration,” she stated. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't captured for online platforms. “I'd never publish openly content in which I directly criticize authorities … I think this is a learned behavior from China.”
Wang, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost ten years, leaving in that year. By 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, protests, and exploring New York’s public library.
However in the year since Donald Trump was elected again, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “Back home, I understood where the line was, while here I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Her fears mirror a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in the country, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies are ostracised. The leader demands absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called him as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in the trade war on Thursday, the bonhomie between the two leaders of countries with vastly different political systems became clear. And after decades of optimism in the US that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears as if America is shifting in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” said Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses in order to sideline or undermine the elite … reminiscent of events in the country decades past.”
Since the administration initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, many in China see US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent the same levels of violence.
However since the upheaval of the early months under Trump subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels familiar to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, turned Chinese Communist party critic, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He resided in America for several years, after escaping the country because of pressure from officials.
In September, following the passing of a public figure, he posted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom were fired for making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to create division.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in America – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
His backlash came from online peers, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring also has parallels with the East.
“In terms of targeting dissenters and monitoring public speech about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something observed in China now as well,” she added, adding that there were now fears in America of pupils informing against teachers, a type of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, explained that progressive thinkers such as him used to look to the US for ideals, since public debate on domestic politics in China is risky. But now, “America is no longer a ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”
“We once viewed the US as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, critical of the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than America’s, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but after the pandemic, authorities appears to be pursuing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, appear declining.”
The government's purchase of stakes in US companies 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 new company focused on mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in other companies it considers vital to national security. The deals have made some investors nervous that the US is embarking on a new era of state intervention in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on approved information. US courts have blocked or reversed many of presidential measures, something that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States could descend into the worst crisis of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it would remain freer, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang observes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see US universities capitulate to government demands concerning DEI policies and open discourse on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are publicly controlled by default. Administrators, who are selected by the state, “have no liberty of saying no. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to adopt measures previously confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college who was previously vocal on US-China issues refused to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
