A Scholar Escaped China Two Decades Ago — Now He’s Warning About Beijing’s Infiltration in America

In this The Epoch Times article, Eva Fu profiles scholar and historian Zhang Tianliang, who says his experience escaping Chinese communist indoctrination gives him a warning America cannot afford to ignore.

• Zhang Tianliang, a senior fellow at the Consilium Institute and professor at Fei Tian College, says his faith in the Chinese Communist Party collapsed in July 1999 during the regime’s campaign against Falun Gong.
• The article frames Zhang’s story as one of ideological awakening, moving from belief in the communist system to a broader warning about how the CCP operates both inside and outside China.
• Zhang argues that Beijing’s influence campaign in America is not limited to espionage or economics, but includes cultural, educational, and ideological infiltration.
• His warning centers on the idea that communist systems seek to reshape how people think before they ever attempt overt control.
• The piece presents Zhang as someone who believes Americans must understand the CCP’s internal logic, not merely judge it by Western assumptions about diplomacy or normal statecraft.
• The article suggests that China’s regime uses long-term strategy, institutional pressure, and soft-power networks to weaken resistance in foreign countries.
• Zhang’s personal background as a former believer in the system gives weight to his argument that communist indoctrination can appear normal to those living inside it.
• The broader takeaway is that America’s openness can become a vulnerability when adversarial regimes exploit universities, media, business relationships, and cultural institutions.
• The article casts Zhang’s mission as educational: helping Americans recognize ideological threats before they become entrenched.

Read the full story: https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/a-scholar-escaped-china-two-decades-ago-now-hes-warning-about-beijings-infiltration-in-america-6025147?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=TheLibertyDaily