When Vickie Wang, an emerging performer, takes the stage in New York, she's not only considering what humor to tell. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to avoid. “I refrain from openly attacking the government,” she explained. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I would never publicly share content in which I directly criticize the government … I believe it's a learned behavior from China.”
Wang, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, departing in that year. In 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” going to talks, protests, and exploring the city's library system.
But in the year after Donald Trump was elected again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I knew where the line was, while in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her fears mirror a new political reality in the US which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.
Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He's called Xi as a “great guy”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. Following years of hope in America that closer ties with China may help the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it seems as if the US is shifting in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“America is undergoing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses to marginalize or undermine established figures … similar to events in China half a century ago.”
Since the administration unleashed the so-called Department for Government Efficiency, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy early on of his term, many in China see US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, though absent equivalent degrees of force.
But after the turmoil of the initial period of the new administration subsided, a new, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between the US today and the East is the crackdown on free speech.
A former police officer, turned CCP dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he’d only previously experienced in China. He has lived in America since 2019, having fled China due to harassment from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – many of whom lost their jobs as a result of making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of being a Chinese spy attempting to create division.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I never imagined such a thing would occur in America – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” he commented.
Deng’s pile on originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with China.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and monitoring open discourse about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” said an academic, a scholar at Georgia State University. “That’s something that you see in China now as too,” she said, stating that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on teachers, a type of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, said that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to the US for ideals, since openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. However, “The US isn't some kind of ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened generally.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, Zhang said. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities appears to be pursuing the right thing in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, as represented by the United States, seems to be in decline.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in US companies has prompted parallels with the East, where the line between state and private industry is often blurred.
Recently, the US government stated it would become an investor in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in additional firms it considers vital to the country's safety. The deals have left some investors concerned that America is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. Last month, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded they only report on approved news. US courts have halted or reversed many of presidential measures, something that is unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than currently, and it would remain freer, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
The professor observes that although many intellectuals in China were shocked to see American colleges capitulate to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, which are selected by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, Americans are beginning to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college who was previously vocal on bilateral matters refused to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I am scared of suppression here: I genuinely feel less afraid criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
