As the standup comedian, a rising performer, takes the stage in New York, she's not only considering which jokes to tell. Additionally, she weighs which topics to steer clear of. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” she explained. And when she ventures there, she ensures it isn't recorded for online platforms. “I would never publicly share material where I openly disparage the government … I think this is a habit from China.”
The comedian, 39, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, departing in that year. In 2025, she moved to the US. When she got there, she embarked on a frenzy of “overindulging on freedom,” attending talks, protests, and exploring the city's public library.
However over the past year after the president returned to office for the second time, there has been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I knew the boundaries, while in the US I find myself on unstable ground.”
Her concerns reflect a new climate in America which many Chinese, or those who have lived in China, perceive as eerily familiar. Enemies are ostracised. The leader demands absolute loyalty. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
The president has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s strongman leader. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a temporary truce in economic tensions recently, the bonhomie between both figures of nations with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. Following years of hope in America that closer ties with the East could assist the growing nation to liberalise, in the current administration, it seems that America is shifting in the Chinese direction, rather than the other way around.
“The United States is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” said a constitutional law expert, an academic at Peking University. “The top leader, Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots in order to sideline or undermine the elite … similar to what happened in the country decades past.”
Since the administration initiated what's termed a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions at the start of his term, many in China have viewed American governance through the lens of China's historical period. Be it the mobilisation of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging organizations of those deemed opposition, the president as viewed from China has brought Mao-style chaos to America, albeit without the same levels of violence.
But since the turmoil of the early months of the new administration subsided, an unfamiliar, distinct type of political atmosphere has emerged in the country, which in different ways seems recognizable to numerous Chinese people.
‘The Beacon Has Become Dimmer’
The most profound similarity between the US today and the East is the suppression on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, turned CCP critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he once faced in China. Deng resided in the US for several years, having fled the country due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, after the death of Charlie Kirk, he posted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people nationwide – many of whom lost their jobs for making negative comments regarding him – Deng faced a huge backlash. Relatives had personal info leaked and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“This incident was a real shock. I hadn't thought that something like this could happen in America – what should only happen in a repressive state,” Deng said.
Deng’s backlash 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 dissenters and monitoring open discourse on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” said Maria Repnikova, an associate professor at a US university. “This is that you see in the East now as well,” she added, stating that concerns are rising in America of students reporting on educators, a type of surveillance that has been encouraged by the CCP.
The professor, the Peking University law professor, explained that liberal Chinese intellectuals like himself used to look to the US for ideals, since openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. But now, “America is no longer a god for progressive Chinese. America’s image has declined generally.”
“We once viewed the US as the beacon of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse appears less luminous”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” he noted, while “the West, exemplified by America, seems to be in decline.”
The government's purchase of shares in American firms has also drawn parallels with the East, where the distinction between government and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, the US government stated it will take an investor in a new company specialising in rare earth processing, following similar stakes in other companies it considers vital to national security. The deals have made certain stakeholders concerned that America is embarking on a new era of government meddling in private industry.
There are still major differences between the US under Trump and China. Last month, several news organisations among others refused to sign to a defense department rule that required they only report on approved information. US courts have blocked or reversed numerous presidential measures, something that would be unthinkable in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
Isaac Stone Fish, who established of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, said: “America might face the worst crisis of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it will still be more free, open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang observes that although numerous scholars in China were surprised to see American colleges capitulate to government demands concerning diversity and inclusion practices and open discourse on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, which are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They can’t afford defy orders.”
Still, Americans are starting to adopt measures previously associated with repressive regimes. One professor at a US university who was previously outspoken on bilateral matters declined to speak for this piece. He stated: “Honestly, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
