As the standup comedian, an emerging performer, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she's not just considering which jokes to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I don't engage in openly attacking the administration,” she explained. Or if she ventures there, she makes certain it isn't captured for online platforms. “I would never publish openly material in which I openly disparage authorities … I believe this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to lectures, protests, and delving into New York’s public library.
However over the past year after the president was elected for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew the boundaries, while here I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her concerns reflect an emerging climate in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies face exclusion. The president demands total allegiance. Journalists are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
The president has openly expressed about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's strongman leader. He's called him as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in the trade war recently, the bonhomie between the two leaders of nations with diametrically opposed governance models was evident. And after decades of hope in the US that closer ties with China could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears as if America is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.
“The United States is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots to marginalize or weaken established figures … reminiscent of what happened in China decades past.”
Ever since the administration initiated the so-called a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions early on in office, numerous Chinese observers see US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out presidential directives, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit without equivalent degrees of force.
However since the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, a new, different kind of climate has settled in the country, which variously seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’
The deepest parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP critic, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in America since 2019, after escaping China because of harassment from the authorities.
In September, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Like people across the US – who lost their jobs as a result of making negative comments regarding him – he encountered significant backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he was accused of espionage attempting to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought such a thing would occur in the United States – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
Deng’s backlash originated from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring also has parallels with China.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse about issues deemed controversial … It's appearing here,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in China today as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on educators, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him used to look to the US for political inspiration, since openly discussing domestic politics in China is dangerous. However, “The US isn't some kind of god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We used to see America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse appears less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, as represented by America, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn comparisons with China, where the line between state and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities stated it will take an investor in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, following comparable shares in other companies it considers essential for national security. These moves have left some investors concerned that the US is entering a new era of government meddling in the private sector.
There are still major differences between the US under Trump and China. Last month, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that required they only report on approved information. US courts have halted or reversed many of Trump’s actions, an action that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it will still be more free, open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that although many intellectuals in China were shocked to see American colleges capitulate to government demands regarding diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on university grounds, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, who are selected by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Still, people in the US are beginning to take precautions that were once associated with repressive regimes. One professor at an American college once outspoken on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I fear of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
