I am not an oracle, so I cannot say how this is going to end. But I can tell you this: Corporate America’s subservience to communist China and the resurgence of populism in the United States are two forces that cannot coexist.
Something is going to give. After the displays of slavish deference American companies showed China this week, and with the persistent appeal of the MAGA brand of politics in the United States, that “something” will give probably sooner rather than later.
The NBA this weekend aligned itself with its business partners in China against the pro-democracy demonstrators in Hong Kong. The NBA siding with a murderous, authoritarian regime against the interests of freedom fighters has manifested itself in multiple acts of flagrant cowardice from coaches, players, and league officials, including apologies to China and moral equivocations. Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr even argued Thursday that there is little daylight between China and the United States when it comes to the issue of human rights abuses.
As this debacle has unfolded, ESPN reportedly ordered its on-air personalities to avoid discussing the NBA/China situation in such a way that could upset their parent company, Disney, and Disney’s business partners in China. Certain network hosts, including Stephen A. Smith, responded to this reported directive with gusto.
China’s inroads into corporate America are no great secret. Even casually interested news-watchers know this. Hollywood has, for example, censored itself for years to please Chinese authorities and investors. Yet American companies have moved on from playing footsie with the communists to jumping right into bed with the People’s “Republic” of China by actively promoting the communist party line.
Take Apple, for example, which removed the Taiwan flag emoji in iOS in Hong Kong. Apple also deleted an app from its store that allowed the Hong Kong protesters to track police movement, claiming the program, which is not unlike the Waze app in the United States, “endanger[ed] law enforcement and residents.”
There is the shoe company Vans, which blocked entries from Hong Kong protesters in its annual Vans Custom Culture competition, claiming the decision is based on its “long-held values of respect and tolerance.”
There is ESPN again, which aired an on-screen graphic this week conceding China’s claim to the South China Sea.
There is Nike, which stripped its stores in China of Houston Rockets merchandise after the NBA team’s general manager, Daryl Morey, said in a since-deleted tweet, “Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong.” Ironically enough, Nike is the same company that very recently launched a civil rights-themed ad campaign with the tagline, “Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything.”
There is also the gaming company Activision Blizzard, which suspended a player for a year after he voiced support in an interview for the Hong Kong demonstrators. The group also stripped him of thousands of dollars in prize money and fired the individuals who conducted the interview.
The list of American companies that have bent over backward to promote Chinese communist propaganda to the detriment of the principles of liberty and individual freedom goes on and on. It includes everything from Delta Airlines, which once apologized for describing Taiwan and Tibet as countries, to Marriott International, which once fired an American employee for “liking” a pro-free Tibet tweet.
Chinese “dictator for life” Xi Jinping, who models himself after murderous dictator Mao Zedong, thanks you for your service.
It would be one thing if China’s domination of American businesses took place in the dark. But the events of this week have shined a light on the reality of the issue, prompting shock and consternation in the American press and on social media. Of course, that will not be enough to change the current dynamic between corporate America and China. Consumers in the United States are not going to pass up cheap goods and services simply because Apple deleted the Taiwanese flag from iOS in Hong Kong.
But the populists are taking notes. China is not using American businesses to oppress just Taiwan, Tibet, and others. It is also using American businesses to punish obscure employees in places like Omaha, Nebraska, for expressing political opinions contrary to the interests of the Communist Party of China.
If American populists are smart, they will continue to draw attention to China’s control over U.S. businesses and employees, educating the electorate to the truth of the matter. This could allow the populists to gain a greater foothold in U.S. government.
If that happens, don’t expect to see more of the status quo, where China imports its values into American markets, as opposed to the other way around, all while manipulating its currency and stealing intellectual property at levels that stagger the imagination. If the populists gain more power using things like the NBA/China debacle as the hook, don’t be surprised if these newly elected U.S. lawmakers take a hard second-look at President Richard Nixon’s decision in the early 1970s to open trade with China in the first place.
