When Vickie Wang, an emerging performer, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she's not just considering which jokes to deliver. Additionally, she carefully considers which topics to steer clear of. “I refrain from openly attacking the government,” she stated. Or if she ventures there, she makes certain it isn't captured for online platforms. “I would never publish openly content where I openly disparage authorities … I believe it's a habit acquired back home.”
Wang, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, leaving in that year. In 2025, she moved to the US. Upon arrival, she embarked on an intense period of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and delving into the city's public library.
However in the year after Donald Trump returned to office for the second time, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, whereas in the US I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her fears reflect a new political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or people with experience in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents are ostracised. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Institutions come under fire.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for China's leader, the nation's authoritarian figure. He has described him as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions recently, the bonhomie between both figures of countries with vastly different governance models was evident. Following years of optimism in the US that improved relations with China may help the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it seems that America is being pulled in China's path, rather than vice versa.
“America is experiencing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Trump, is attempting to rally the grassroots in order to sideline or undermine established figures … reminiscent of events in China half a century ago.”
Ever since Trump initiated the so-called a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions early on of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent equivalent degrees of force.
But since the turmoil of the early months of the new administration has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which in different ways also feels familiar to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, now a Chinese Communist party critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in his homeland. He has lived in America for several years, having fled the country because of harassment from the authorities.
Last fall, after the death of Charlie Kirk, Deng tweeted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Similar to others nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments about Kirk – Deng faced significant backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I never imagined that something like this would occur in the United States – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.
His pile on came from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of social surveillance bears similarities with China.
“In terms of going after those who disagree and monitoring open discourse about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing in the US,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is that you see in the East today as well,” she added, adding that there were now fears in America of students reporting on educators, a form of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, said that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to the US for political inspiration, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in China is dangerous. However, “The US isn't a god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”
“We used to see America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, that guide appears dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, typically, at least in private, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It’s sort of painful to accept this … but post-COVID, authorities appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of stakes in US companies has prompted parallels with China, where the line between government and private industry is often blurred.
On Monday, authorities stated it will take a shareholder in a startup focused on rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in other companies it considers vital to the country's safety. These moves have made some investors concerned that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and China. Last month, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that required reporting solely on government-authorised information. US courts have halted or reversed numerous Trump’s actions, an action that is unthinkable in China’s party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, who established of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “The United States might face the worst crisis of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it will still be freer, open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that while numerous scholars in the country were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on campus, in the East, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. Administrators, which are selected by the government, “have no liberty of saying no. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Still, people in the US are beginning to adopt measures previously confined to repressive regimes. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters refused to speak for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable criticizing China's leader now than say anything bad
