As Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, steps onto her platform in the Big Apple, she is not only considering which jokes to tell. She also weighs what subjects to steer clear of. “I don't engage in directly attacking the administration,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it isn't captured for online platforms. “I'd never publish openly material in which I openly disparage the government … I think this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for almost a decade, departing in 2022. By 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she dove into a frenzy of “overindulging on democracy,” going to lectures, demonstrations, and exploring the city's public library.
But in the year after Donald Trump returned to office again, there's been a noticeable shift in the environment, she says. “Back home, I understood the boundaries, while in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”
Her fears reflect a new political reality in America which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, find eerily similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader expects absolute loyalty. Reporters are targeted. Institutions are attacked.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, the nation's strongman leader. He has described him as a “great guy”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in the trade war recently, the camaraderie between both figures of nations with vastly different political systems was evident. And after decades of hope in America that improved relations with China may help the rising power become more open, in the current administration, it seems that America is shifting in China's path, rather than the other way around.
“America is undergoing a period of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The president, Trump, is attempting to rally the masses in order to marginalize or weaken established figures … similar to events in the country decades past.”
Ever since the administration unleashed what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start of his term, many in China see American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the rallying of the youth to execute presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, Trump as viewed from China has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent equivalent degrees of violence.
However since the upheaval of the initial period under Trump has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the country, which in different ways also feels familiar to numerous Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The most profound parallel between Trump’s America and the East is the crackdown on free speech.
A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party critic, ended up in a controversy this year, similar to what he’d only previously experienced in China. Deng resided in the US since 2019, having fled the country due to pressure from the authorities.
In September, after the death of a public figure, he posted that the individual was a “scumbag”. Like people nationwide – many of whom were fired for making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. Relatives was doxed and he was accused of being a Chinese spy attempting to divide the US.
“This incident surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought that something like this would occur in America – something that should only happen in a repressive state,” he commented.
His backlash came from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but such of social surveillance also has parallels with the East.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse on topics that are sensitive … It's appearing here,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in the East today as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on educators, a form of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, said that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to America for political inspiration, since public debate on internal affairs in China is dangerous. But now, “America isn't a god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We used to see America as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, at least in private, skeptical about the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It’s sort of difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and developing electric cars and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, exemplified by the United States, appear in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn parallels with China, where the line between state and private industry is frequently unclear.
On Monday, the US government stated it will take an investor in a startup specialising in mineral refinement, following similar stakes in other companies it considers essential for national security. These moves have made some investors nervous that the US is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in the private sector.
Yet, there remain major differences between the US under Trump and the East. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that required they only report on government-authorised news. American judiciary have blocked or overturned numerous presidential measures, something that would be unthinkable in China’s party-dominated judiciary.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America could descend into the worst crisis of all time, far more severe than it is now, and it will still be freer, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang notes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to official requests regarding DEI policies and open discourse on university grounds, in the East, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. University leaders, who are selected by the government, “cannot of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Nevertheless, people in the US are beginning to take precautions that were once confined to repressive regimes. An academic at a US university once outspoken on US-China issues refused to be interviewed for this article. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship here: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
