As the standup comedian, a rising comedic talent, takes her platform in New York, she's not only thinking about which jokes to deliver. She also carefully considers what subjects to avoid. “I refrain from directly attacking the government,” she stated. And when she ventures there, she ensures it's not recorded for social media. “I'd never publicly share content in which I directly criticize authorities … I think it's a habit acquired back home.”
The comedian, 39, lived in the Chinese metropolis for nearly ten years, departing in 2022. In 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on democracy,” attending lectures, demonstrations, and exploring New York’s library system.
But in the year after Donald Trump was elected again, there has been a “palpable change” in the environment, she says. “In China, I knew where the line was, while in the US I find myself on shifting sands.”
Her concerns reflect an emerging climate in America which many Chinese, or people who have lived in the country, perceive as disturbingly familiar. Enemies face exclusion. The leader expects total allegiance. Reporters are targeted. Establishments come under fire.
Trump has not been shy about his admiration for Xi Jinping, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. When they reached a brief ceasefire in economic tensions on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. Following years of hope in America that improved relations with the East could assist the growing nation become more open, under Trump 2.0, it appears that America is being pulled in China's path, instead of the other way around.
“America is undergoing a period of cultural revolution,” stated Zhang Qianfan, an academic at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Trump, is trying to mobilise the grassroots in order to sideline or undermine established figures … similar to what happened in China decades past.”
Ever since Trump initiated what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start of his term, numerous Chinese observers see US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Be it the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or purging institutions of those deemed opposition, Trump from a Chinese viewpoint has delivered Mao-style chaos to the US, though without the same levels of force.
But after the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, an unfamiliar, distinct type of climate has emerged in the US, which in different ways seems familiar to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The deepest parallel between the US today and the East is the suppression on open expression.
Deng Haiyan, now a Chinese Communist party dissenter, found himself in the eye of a storm recently, the likes of which he once faced in his homeland. He resided in the US since 2019, having fled China due to pressure from officials.
Last fall, following the passing of a public figure, Deng tweeted that the individual was “despicable”. Similar to others nationwide – who lost their jobs for expressing criticism about Kirk – Deng faced a huge 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 – what typically happens in a repressive state,” he commented.
Deng’s backlash originated from fellow social media users, instead of the government, but such of social surveillance bears similarities with China.
“In terms of going after those who disagree and starting to surveil public speech about issues deemed controversial … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said an academic, a scholar at Georgia State University. “This is that you see in the East now as well,” she said, adding that there were now fears in the US of students reporting on educators, a type of monitoring promoted by the CCP.
The professor, the legal expert, said 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 risky. But now, “America is no longer a god for Chinese liberals. The US's reputation has worsened generally.”
“We once viewed America as the symbol of democratic governance, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse seems to have become less luminous”.
Chinese liberals, typically, behind closed doors, critical of China’s political system, now perceive it more acceptable than America’s, he stated. “It's somewhat painful to accept this reality … but after the pandemic, authorities appears to be pursuing correct policies in improving the environment and developing electric cars and investing in hi-tech,” Zhang said, while “the West, as represented by the United States, appear declining.”
The government's acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn parallels with the East, where the line between government and private industry is frequently unclear.
Recently, the US government stated it would become a shareholder in a new company focused on rare earth processing, following comparable shares in additional firms it considers essential for national security. These moves have left certain stakeholders nervous 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, multiple media outlets among others declined to agree to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on approved news. American judiciary have halted or reversed many of presidential measures, an action that would be impossible in the nation's party-dominated judiciary.
An analyst, who established of a consulting firm, specializing in China, commented: “The United States could descend into its gravest challenge of all time, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it will still be more free, more open, and liberal than China under Xi.”
Zhang notes that while many intellectuals in the country were surprised to see American colleges yield to official requests concerning diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on campus, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled inherently. Administrators, which are appointed by the government, “cannot of saying no. They dare not to be disobedient.”
Still, people in the US are starting to take precautions previously associated with repressive regimes. An academic at an American college once outspoken on US-China issues declined to be interviewed for this article. He said: “The truth is, I fear of suppression in the US: I genuinely feel more comfortable to criticise Xi these days than say anything bad
