As the standup comedian, an emerging comedic talent, takes the stage in the Big Apple, she is not only thinking about what humor to tell. She also weighs what subjects to avoid. “I don't engage in openly criticizing the government,” she explained. And when she ventures there, she makes certain it isn't recorded for social media. “I would never publicly share material in which I directly criticize the government … I think this is a habit acquired back home.”
The comedian, 39, resided in Shanghai for almost ten years, departing in that year. In 2025, she relocated to America. Upon arrival, she dove into a frenzy of “revenge bingeing on freedom,” attending talks, demonstrations, and delving into New York’s library system.
But in the year after the president returned to office again, there has been a noticeable shift in the environment, she notes. “In China, I understood the boundaries, whereas in the US I'm standing on unstable ground.”
Wang’s fears mirror a new climate in the US which numerous individuals from China, or those who have lived in China, perceive as disturbingly similar. Opponents face exclusion. The leader expects total allegiance. Reporters face scrutiny. Establishments come under fire.
The president has not been shy about his admiration for China's leader, China’s authoritarian figure. He's called Xi as “fantastic”. As they agreed a brief ceasefire in the trade war on Thursday, the camaraderie between the two leaders of countries with diametrically opposed political systems was evident. Following years of optimism in the US that improved relations with China may help the rising power to liberalise, in the current administration, it appears that the US is being pulled in the Chinese direction, instead of the other way around.
“America is undergoing an era of societal upheaval,” stated Zhang Qianfan, a professor at a top Chinese university. “The top leader, Donald Trump, is trying to mobilise the masses in order to sideline or weaken the elite … reminiscent of events in the country half a century ago.”
Since Trump unleashed what's termed Department for Government Efficiency, or Doge, on the Washington bureaucracy at the start in office, many in China see US politics via the perspective of the Cultural Revolution. Whether it is the rallying of the youth to carry out presidential directives, or cleansing institutions of perceived enemies, the president from a Chinese viewpoint has brought Mao-style chaos to the US, though without the same levels of violence.
But since the upheaval of the early months under Trump has calmed, an unfamiliar, different kind of political atmosphere has emerged in the US, which in different ways also feels recognizable to many Chinese individuals.
‘The Lighthouse Has Become Less Bright’
The most profound similarity between Trump’s America and China is the suppression on free speech.
A former police officer, turned CCP critic, ended up in a controversy recently, the likes of which he once faced in China. He has lived in America for several years, having fled China because of pressure from officials.
Last fall, after the death of a public figure, Deng tweeted that Kirk was “despicable”. Like people across the US – many of whom were fired for expressing criticism regarding him – Deng faced significant backlash. His family was doxed and he faced allegations of espionage attempting to divide the US.
“That event surprised me deeply. I hadn't thought such a thing could happen in the United States – something that typically happens in an authoritarian country,” Deng said.
Deng’s pile on came from online peers, rather than the government, but that kind of social surveillance also has similarities with China.
“In terms of targeting those who disagree and starting to surveil open discourse on topics that are sensitive … That’s starting to emerge in the US,” said an academic, an associate professor at a US university. “This is that you see in the East today as too,” she said, stating that concerns are rising in the US of students reporting on educators, a type of surveillance promoted by Chinese authorities.
Zhang, the legal expert, explained that progressive thinkers like himself used to look to America for ideals, in part because openly discussing domestic politics in the country is risky. However, “America isn't a ideal for progressive Chinese. America’s image has worsened generally.”
“We used to see America as the symbol of constitutional democracy, but after Trump took power, this lighthouse appears dimmer”.
Progressive Chinese, typically, at least in private, skeptical about the nation's governance, are increasingly finding it more acceptable than the US's, he stated. “It's somewhat difficult to acknowledge this reality … but post-COVID, authorities seems to be doing correct policies in environmental protection and promoting EVs and tech investment,” Zhang said, while “Western nations, as represented by America, seems to be in decline.”
The Trump administration’s acquisition of shares in US companies has also drawn parallels with China, where the line between state and business is frequently unclear.
On Monday, the US government announced it will take a shareholder in a new company specialising in mineral refinement, after taking comparable shares in additional firms deemed vital to national security. These moves have left certain stakeholders concerned that America is embarking on a new era of state intervention in private industry.
Yet, there remain significant distinctions between Trump’s America and the East. In October, several news organisations including the Guardian declined to agree to a defense department rule that required reporting solely on government-authorised news. US courts have blocked or overturned many of Trump’s actions, something that is impossible in the nation's party-dominated legal system.
An analyst, the founder of a consulting firm, a China-focused advisory firm, commented: “America might face its gravest challenge of its history, orders of magnitudes worse than currently, and it would remain more free, open, and more liberal than the East under its leader.”
Zhang observes that although numerous scholars in China were shocked to see US universities yield to official requests regarding diversity and inclusion practices and free speech on university grounds, in China, the top universities are publicly controlled by default. University leaders, who are appointed by the government, “have no liberty refuse. They dare not defy orders.”
Nevertheless, Americans are starting to adopt measures previously associated with more authoritarian countries. An academic at an American college once vocal on bilateral matters refused to speak for this article. He stated: “The truth is, I am scared of the censorship in the US: I genuinely feel less afraid to criticise Xi now than say anything bad
