With the election results in, one of the biggest concerns about Trump’s future presidency is his effect on our economy — more specifically, his implementation of tariffs on foreign goods. Everyone is focused on the American economy and the potential for retaliatory tariffs and rising prices for everyday goods, but the average American doesn’t stop to think about the people around the world who deserve a right to financial security as much as they themselves do.
There’s an old Chinese proverb by philosopher Zhuangzi that reads, “The straightest tree is the first to be cut down. The well with the sweetest water is the first to be drained.” China’s gross domestic product (GDP) is rapidly growing, even faster than that of the U.S., per the Peterson Institute. Though Trump perceives this economic growth as a threat to the U.S. economy, China is also an easy target because it represents the opposite of many American ideals. It’s not as “free.” Chinese citizens have limited access to privacy, freedom of expression and democracy, all rights that we here in the U.S. have taken for granted and never stopped to question. Trump justifies a Chinese tariff by highlighting the supposed dangers of Chinese society. He vilifies the Chinese government in order to pit the American public against the country.
Trump has plagued citizens’ judgment, making citizens believe in an inherent American superiority. In his eyes, there is no better country to force into submission than one so vastly different and threatening to our own. However, what Trump fails to understand is that we can coexist with China in a society that promotes economic flourishing rather than battles over foreign goods and production.
Instead of rejecting Chinese technological developments, Trump should embrace change and judge Chinese exports at face value. Dangers of rejecting or punishing exporters from accessing an American market sink deeper than hindering advancements in the U.S. It can also lead to the detriment of Chinese workers who depend on this export business.
Chinese citizen and junior Warren Peng shared experiences of some of his family members who still live in China. “My uncle from China, 彭娜呀, is a sweatshop worker for Temu,” Peng shared. “If Trump’s tariff policies get passed, his factory would go out of business, and he would have to live on the streets.”
Trump’s perspective centers around himself. He focuses heavily on how policies will affect the American government and people, not stopping to look around at the world from a global lens. He has always prioritized an “America First” approach to international relations, as evident through his negative viewpoint on U.S. involvement in international agreements and his threats to withdraw aid from NATO.
The overarching problem with Trump’s policies goes deeper than whether or not tariffs will positively impact the American economy; it’s about equity and the economy around the world. We worry about how the working class in America will be able to afford the basic necessities of life like groceries, clothing, gas and heat. These worries are valid concerns, but the issue lives deeper. In the same way that climate activists talk about the disproportionate effects of climate change on impoverished countries, we need to talk about how American economic policy will have its own disproportionate effect on export-based economies like China.
Equality isn’t just about making sure lower and middle citizens can afford basic necessities in America; it’s about ensuring fairness for everyone around the world. Trump can’t be a proponent of this concept if he fights only for equality of the American populus. That’s about as unequal as it gets: the benefits of economic policy positively impact some people but lead to the detriment of others. This isn’t just a conflict between the two major powers of the U.S. and China; it’s a fight for life on the individual level.
