When the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she's not just thinking about what humor to tell. She also weighs what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” she explained. And when she does, she makes certain it's not captured for online platforms. “I'd never publicly share material in which I openly disparage authorities … I believe this is a learned behavior acquired back home.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for almost ten years, leaving in that year. In 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” attending lectures, protests, and delving into the city's public library.
However over the past year since Donald Trump was elected for the second time, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “In China, I knew the boundaries, whereas here I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s concerns reflect an emerging political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or people who have lived in the country, perceive as disturbingly similar. Enemies are ostracised. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Journalists are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, the nation's authoritarian figure. He's called him as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions recently, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems became clear. And after decades of hope in the US that closer ties with China could assist the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears that the US is being pulled in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“America is experiencing an era of societal upheaval,” said Zhang Qianfan, an academic at Peking University. “The president, Donald Trump, is attempting to mobilise the grassroots in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … similar to events in the country decades past.”
Since Trump initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or Doge, on federal institutions early on of his term, many in China see US politics through the lens of China's historical period. Whether it is the mobilisation of the youth to execute the leader’s will, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without equivalent degrees of violence.
However since the upheaval of the initial period of the new administration subsided, a new, different kind of climate has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Dimmer’
The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on free speech.
Deng Haiyan, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, ended up in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. He has lived in America since 2019, having fled the country because of harassment from the authorities.
Last fall, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others across the US – who lost their jobs for expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to divide the US.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in the United States – something that typically happens in a repressive state,” he commented.
His pile on originated from fellow social media users, instead of the state, but that kind of public monitoring also has parallels with China.
“In terms of going after those who disagree and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … It's appearing in the US,” noted an academic, an associate professor at a US university. “This is observed in China today as too,” she added, adding that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against educators, a form of surveillance that has been encouraged by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals such as him once turned to the US for ideals, in part because public debate on domestic politics in China is dangerous. However, “The US is no longer some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”
“We used to see America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but after the pandemic, the government seems to be doing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, as represented by America, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has prompted parallels with China, where the distinction between government and private industry is often blurred.
On Monday, authorities announced it would become an investor in a startup specialising in rare earth processing, after taking similar stakes in additional firms it considers vital to the country's safety. The deals have left certain stakeholders concerned that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. In October, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on government-authorised news. US courts have halted or reversed many of Trump’s actions, something that would be unthinkable in the nation's party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, specializing in China, said: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, far more severe than currently, and it would remain freer, open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang notes that although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on university grounds, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, who are appointed by the state, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to take precautions that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college once outspoken on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this piece. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
