When Vickie Wang, an emerging comedic talent, takes her platform in the Big Apple, she is not just considering what humor to deliver. She also carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the government,” she stated. And when she ventures there, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I'd never publish openly content where I directly criticize authorities … I believe this is a habit acquired back home.”
Wang, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, departing in that year. By 2025, she relocated to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” attending talks, protests, and delving into New York’s public library.
But over the past year since the president was elected for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “Back home, I understood where the line was, while here I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears reflect an emerging climate in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, find eerily similar. Enemies are ostracised. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called him as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. And after decades of optimism in America that closer ties with China may help the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it seems as if America is being pulled in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“America is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses to marginalize or weaken established figures … reminiscent of what happened in China decades past.”
Since the administration initiated the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start in office, numerous Chinese observers have viewed US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out presidential directives, or cleansing institutions of perceived enemies, the president as viewed from China has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without the same levels of force.
However since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump subsided, an unfamiliar, different kind of political atmosphere has settled in the US, which in different ways seems familiar to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, turned CCP critic, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. He resided in the US since 2019, having fled China due to pressure from officials.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – who lost their jobs for expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in the United States – what should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.
His pile on came from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but such of social surveillance bears similarities with the East.
“Regarding going after those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech on topics deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at a US university. “This is observed in the East today as too,” she said, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on educators, a form of monitoring that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the legal expert, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to America for political inspiration, since openly discussing internal affairs in China is risky. But now, “America isn't a god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than America’s, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in American firms has prompted comparisons with the East, where the line between state and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, authorities stated it would become a shareholder in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, following comparable shares in other companies deemed essential for the country's safety. These moves have made some investors nervous that the US is entering a new era of government meddling in the private sector.
There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian refused to sign to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on approved news. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in China’s CCP-controlled judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “The United States might face its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than currently, and it will still be more free, more open, and more liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang observes that although many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are selected by the state, “cannot of saying no. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are beginning to take precautions previously associated with more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college once vocal on US-China issues declined to speak for this article. He said: “The truth is, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
