When the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she's not only thinking about what humor to tell. She also carefully considers what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the government,” she explained. Or if she does, she makes certain it isn't captured for social media. “I'd never publicly share material in which I directly criticize the government … I think it's a learned behavior acquired back home.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, lived in Shanghai for almost a decade, departing in 2022. In 2025, she moved to America. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s library system.
However over the past year since Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she notes. “In China, I knew the boundaries, while here I find myself on shifting sands.”
Wang’s fears reflect an emerging climate in America which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in the country, perceive as eerily similar. Enemies face exclusion. The president expects total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments are attacked.
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 brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between both figures of countries with diametrically opposed political systems became clear. And after decades of hope in America that closer ties with the East could assist the rising power to liberalise, in the current administration, it seems as if the US is shifting in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“The United States is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is attempting to mobilise the masses in order to sideline or weaken the elite … reminiscent of events in China half a century ago.”
Since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions early on in office, numerous Chinese observers see American governance through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the mobilisation of the youth to execute presidential directives, or purging organizations of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though without the same levels of violence.
But after the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has settled in the country, which in different ways also feels familiar to many Chinese people.
‘The Lighthouse Is Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the crackdown on open expression.
A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party critic, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America since 2019, having fled China due to harassment from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – who were fired for expressing criticism regarding him – he encountered a huge backlash. Relatives was doxed and he was accused of espionage seeking to create division.
“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this would occur in America – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash originated from online peers, instead of the state, but that kind of public monitoring bears parallels with the East.
“In terms of going after dissenters and monitoring public speech on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing in the US,” noted Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at a US university. “That’s something that you see in China now as well,” she added, adding that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on educators, a type of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to the US for ideals, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in China is risky. But now, “The US is no longer a ideal for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of China’s political system, are increasingly finding it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this reality … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by America, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn parallels with the East, where the distinction between government and business is frequently unclear.
Recently, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a startup focused on rare earth processing, following similar stakes in other companies deemed vital to the country's safety. The deals have made certain stakeholders concerned that America is embarking on a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
There are still major differences between the US under Trump and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on approved news. American judiciary have halted or overturned many of presidential measures, something that is unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than currently, and it will still be freer, more open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang notes that although numerous scholars in the country were surprised to see US universities yield to official requests regarding DEI policies and free speech on campus, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. University leaders, which are selected by the state, “have no liberty of saying no. They dare not defy orders.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to take precautions previously confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at an American college who was previously outspoken on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader these days than say anything bad
