As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto the stage in New York, she is not only considering what humor to tell. She also weighs what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in directly criticizing the government,” she stated. Or if she does, she makes certain it's not captured for social media. “I'd never publish openly material where I openly disparage authorities … I think it's 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 America. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and exploring the city's library system.
However over the past year after the president was elected for the second time, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew where the line was, while in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her fears reflect a new political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The president demands total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed about his admiration for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in the trade war on Thursday, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with vastly different political systems became clear. And after decades of optimism in the US that closer ties with the East may help the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it seems that America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“America is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” said a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or undermine established figures … reminiscent of what happened in the country half a century ago.”
Ever since Trump unleashed what's termed 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. Whether it is the mobilisation of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or cleansing institutions of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit without the same levels of violence.
But after the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, an unfamiliar, different kind of climate has settled in the US, which variously also feels recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’
The deepest parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, turned CCP critic, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, similar to what he once faced in China. Deng resided in America for several years, after escaping China because of harassment from officials.
In September, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom were fired for making negative comments about Kirk – he encountered a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy seeking to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in America – what typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
His pile on came from online peers, rather than the state, but such of public monitoring also has similarities with China.
“In terms of targeting dissenters and starting to surveil open discourse on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” noted Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “That’s something observed in the East today as well,” she said, stating that there were now fears in America of students reporting on teachers, a form of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to the US for ideals, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in China is dangerous. However, “America is no longer a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened generally.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by the United States, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in US companies has also drawn parallels with China, where the distinction between state and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, the US government announced it would become an investor in a startup focused on mineral refinement, after taking similar stakes in other companies deemed essential for the country's safety. The deals have left certain stakeholders nervous that the US is embarking on a new era of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain major differences between Trump’s America and the East. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a Pentagon policy that demanded reporting solely on government-authorised information. US courts have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that is impossible in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, said: “The United States might face its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than currently, and it would remain more free, more open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that although numerous scholars in the country were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, who are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are starting to take precautions that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at an American college who was previously outspoken on US-China issues declined to speak for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I fear of suppression here: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
