Chinese student comparing ‘American Dream’ and ‘China Dream’ sparks debate

A resurfaced video of a Chinese student comparing the “American Dream” and “China Dream” has ignited a debate among social media users.

The video, reshared by Instagram user @shangguan_jiewen in September, shows the student pointing out differences between the “American Dream” and “China Dream,” explaining that the former is an “individual’s dream” that is mainly for the American dollar, while the latter is everyone’s dream that “serves the people.” In her conclusion, the student said, “Don’t mention the American Dream when I’m around again. Vulgar.”

While it is unclear when or where the video was filmed, it has been reshared repeatedly in recent years, such as by Radio Free Asia — Chinese in 2021 and a Korean language forum in 2022.

In the comments, one user expressed support for the student’s message, writing, “I am so happy to see a strong China. The heart of the east and keeping these positive wise ideas strong and alive.” Meanwhile another user commented, “The China Dream only works if everyone is the same race, in this case Han Chinese. The American Dream is every man for himself because of racial diversity.”