When Vickie Wang, a rising comedic talent, steps onto the stage in the Big Apple, she is not only thinking about what humor to tell. Additionally, she weighs which topics to avoid. “I don't engage in directly attacking the government,” she explained. And when she does, she ensures it isn't captured for social media. “I would never publish openly content where I directly criticize the government … I think this is a learned behavior from China.”
The comedian, thirty-nine, resided in the Chinese metropolis for almost a decade, leaving in 2022. In 2025, she moved to America. Upon arrival, she dove into an intense period of “overindulging on freedom,” going to talks, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.
But over the past year after Donald Trump was elected again, there's been a noticeable shift in the atmosphere, she notes. “In China, I understood where the line was, while here I find myself on shifting sands.”
Her concerns reflect a new climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those with experience in China, find disturbingly familiar. Opponents face exclusion. The president demands total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy regarding his respect for China's leader, China’s strongman leader. 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 became clear. Following years of optimism in the US that closer ties with China may help the growing nation become more open, in the current administration, it appears that America is being pulled in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“America is experiencing a period of cultural revolution,” said Zhang Qianfan, a professor at Peking University. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is attempting to rally the grassroots to sideline or undermine the elite … reminiscent of events in China half a century ago.”
Since the administration unleashed the so-called a government streamlining body, or the agency, on federal institutions early on in office, many in China see US politics through the lens of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the mobilisation of young people to carry out presidential directives, or cleansing organizations of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought disorder reminiscent of Mao to the US, though absent the same levels of violence.
However since the turmoil of the initial period of the new administration has calmed, a new, different kind of climate has settled in the US, which in different ways seems recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Beacon Has Become Dimmer’
The most profound parallel between the US today and China is the crackdown on free speech.
A former police officer, turned Chinese Communist party critic, found himself in the eye of a storm this year, similar to what he once faced in his homeland. Deng resided in the US since 2019, having fled the country due to pressure from officials.
In September, following the passing of Charlie Kirk, 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 was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage seeking to create division.
“That event was a real shock. I hadn't thought such a thing would occur in the United States – something that should only happen in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
Deng’s pile on originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but that kind of public monitoring also has similarities with the East.
“In terms of going after those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge here,” said Maria Repnikova, a scholar at a US university. “This is observed in the East now as well,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in America of pupils informing against teachers, a type of surveillance promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to America for ideals, in part because openly discussing internal affairs in China is dangerous. However, “The US is no longer some kind of god for progressive Chinese. The US's reputation has declined across the board.”
“We once viewed America as the beacon of democratic governance, but since the new administration, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, who are often, behind closed doors, skeptical about China’s political system, now perceive it less objectionable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this … but post-COVID, the government appears to be pursuing the right thing in environmental protection and promoting EVs and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, exemplified by America, seems to be declining.”
The government's acquisition of stakes in American firms has also drawn parallels with the East, where the distinction between government and private industry is frequently unclear.
On Monday, authorities stated it will take an investor in a new company specialising in rare earth processing, following comparable shares in other companies deemed essential for the country's safety. The deals have made some investors nervous that America is embarking on a fresh phase of state intervention in the private sector.
There are still significant distinctions between the US under Trump and the East. In October, multiple media outlets including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that demanded reporting solely on approved information. American judiciary have halted or overturned numerous Trump’s actions, an action that would be impossible in the nation's CCP-controlled legal system.
An analyst, the founder of Strategy Risks, specializing in China, commented: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than it is now, and it would remain freer, more open, and liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that although many intellectuals in China were surprised to see US universities capitulate to official requests concerning DEI policies and free speech on university grounds, in China, leading institutions are all state-owned inherently. Administrators, which are selected by the state, “cannot of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Still, Americans are beginning to take precautions that were once confined to more authoritarian countries. One professor at a US university once outspoken on US-China issues declined to speak for this article. He stated: “The truth is, I fear of suppression in the US: I actually feel more comfortable to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
