As Vickie Wang, an emerging comedic talent, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she's not just considering which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers what subjects to avoid. “I refrain from openly criticizing the administration,” she explained. Or if she does, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share content in which I directly criticize authorities … I think this is a habit from China.”
Wang, thirty-nine, lived in Shanghai for nearly ten years, departing in that year. By 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on democracy,” going to talks, demonstrations, and exploring the city's library system.
But over the past year after the president returned to office for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, while in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”
Her fears reflect an emerging climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in China, find disturbingly familiar. Opponents are ostracised. The president expects total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different governance models became clear. Following years of hope in America that closer ties with China could assist the rising power become more open, in the current administration, it appears that the US is shifting in China's path, rather than vice versa.
“The United States is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is trying to rally the grassroots in order to sideline or weaken the elite … reminiscent of what happened in China decades past.”
Since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or purging institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, albeit without the same levels of violence.
But since the turmoil of the early months under Trump subsided, an unfamiliar, different kind of climate has emerged in the country, which variously seems recognizable to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the suppression on open expression.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in a controversy this year, the likes of which he once faced in China. He resided in the US since 2019, having fled the country due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – who lost their jobs for expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced a huge backlash. His family had personal info leaked and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in the United States – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
His pile on came from fellow social media users, rather than the government, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with China.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” noted an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in the East today as well,” she added, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on teachers, a type of surveillance promoted by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to the US for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in China is dangerous. But now, “America is no longer a ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We used to see the US as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become less luminous”.
Chinese liberals, typically, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than America’s, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this reality … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in US companies has prompted comparisons with China, where the line between state and business is often blurred.
On Monday, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a new company focused on mineral refinement, following similar stakes in additional firms deemed vital to national security. The deals have made some investors nervous that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. Last month, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that required they only report on government-authorised news. American judiciary have blocked or reversed many of presidential measures, something that is impossible in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than currently, and it would remain more free, open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
The professor observes that while numerous scholars in the country were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. Administrators, who are appointed by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university once vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
