As the standup comedian, an emerging performer, takes her platform in New York, she is not only thinking about which jokes to tell. She also weighs which topics to avoid. “I don't engage in directly attacking the government,” she explained. And when she does, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I'd never publish openly material in which I directly criticize the government … I believe this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, departing in that year. In 2025, she relocated to America. When she got there, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.
But over the past year since the president returned to office for the second time, there's been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “Back home, I understood where the line was, while here I'm standing on shifting sands.”
Her concerns mirror an emerging climate in the US which many Chinese, or those who have lived in the country, perceive as eerily similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader demands total allegiance. Journalists face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
The president has openly expressed regarding his respect for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He has described Xi as “fantastic”. As they agreed a temporary truce in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of nations with vastly different political systems was evident. And after decades of optimism in America that closer ties with China could assist the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it appears as if America is being pulled in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.
“The United States is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” stated a constitutional law expert, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is trying to rally the masses in order to marginalize or weaken the elite … similar to what happened in China half a century ago.”
Ever since the administration initiated the so-called a government streamlining body, or the agency, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, many in China have viewed US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging organizations of perceived enemies, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered disorder reminiscent of Mao to America, albeit absent the same levels of force.
However since the upheaval of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, a new, distinct type of climate has settled in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Is Less Bright’
The deepest similarity between Trump’s America and China is the crackdown on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, now a CCP critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he once faced in China. He has lived in America since 2019, after escaping China because of pressure from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – who lost their jobs as a result of expressing criticism about Kirk – he encountered significant backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I never imagined such a thing could happen in the United States – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash came from fellow social media users, rather than the state, but that kind of social surveillance bears parallels with the East.
“In terms of targeting dissenters and monitoring public speech about issues that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” noted an academic, an associate professor at Georgia State University. “That’s something observed in the East now as too,” she added, adding that there were now fears in the US of pupils informing against teachers, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers such as him once turned to the US for ideals, since public debate on domestic politics in China is dangerous. However, “The US isn't some kind of ideal for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has declined generally.”
“We once viewed America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, that guide seems to have become dimmer”.
Chinese liberals, who are often, at least in private, critical of the nation's governance, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, Zhang said. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but after the pandemic, authorities appears to be pursuing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” he noted, while “Western nations, as represented by America, seems to be declining.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in American firms has also drawn comparisons with the East, where the line between government and business is often blurred.
On Monday, the US government stated it would become a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, after taking comparable shares in other companies it considers vital to the country's safety. These moves have made certain stakeholders nervous that America is entering a fresh phase of government meddling in private industry.
There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and China. Last month, multiple media outlets among others refused to sign to a Pentagon policy that demanded they only report on approved information. US courts have blocked or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, the founder of Strategy Risks, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America could descend into its gravest challenge of its history, far more severe than it is now, and it would remain freer, open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that while many intellectuals in China were surprised to see American colleges yield to government demands regarding DEI policies and open discourse on campus, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned by default. University leaders, which are appointed by the state, “cannot refuse. They dare not defy orders.”
Still, Americans are beginning to take precautions previously confined to repressive regimes. One professor at an American college who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters refused to be interviewed for this piece. He said: “Honestly, I fear of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
