Nation Ignored: The China Threat that American Media and Citizens Keep Dismissing
Americans know that China is a threat, but few can clearly explain why. Leeshai Lemish can do just that. An American citizen who speaks fluent Mandarin, Lemish interacts with Chinese Americans daily, and at one time, he was an activist that traveled there to protest the CCP’s strong arm tactics against its own citizens. He is also an expert in geopolitics as it relates to China and U.S. relations.
WATCH THE TRAILER FOR UNBROKEN HERE
- Eyewitness to Chinese Communist Party control tactics and global influence
- Personally detained and brutalized for dissenting in China
- Explains China threat in clear, accessible terms
- Insider perspective from Shen Yun Performing Arts
- Featured in Unbroken: The Untold Story of Shen Yun
Fluent in Chinese and deeply immersed in Chinese society, Lemish isn’t a distant analyst—he’s lived the reality of the Chinese Communist Party firsthand. While studying and working in China, he became a dissenting voice and was ultimately detained and brutalized by state police. That experience gave him a rare, unfiltered understanding of how the regime operates: not just politically, but culturally, economically, and psychologically.
Today, he is still a target.
As the longtime emcee of Shen Yun Performing Arts, Lemish has spent nearly 20 years helping bring to life a performance that celebrates traditional Chinese culture—something the CCP has aggressively tried to suppress. What began as artistic expression has evolved into something far more consequential: a sustained clash between an American-based company and one of the world’s most powerful authoritarian regimes.
Lemish has witnessed—and experienced—what that pressure looks like up close: intimidation campaigns, disinformation, and attempts to silence voices the CCP cannot control. His perspective offers a clear, accessible explanation of tactics that many experts describe, but few have personally endured.
Now featured in Unbroken, Lemish helps tell the inside story of Shen Yun’s rise—and the efforts to stop it. The film reveals how the same methods used against dissidents in China are now appearing beyond its borders, raising urgent questions about sovereignty, free expression, and influence in the United States.
What sets Lemish apart is his ability to translate all of this into plain English. He doesn’t speak in policy jargon—he explains how the CCP thinks, how it exerts control, and why it views independent voices as a threat. Whether discussing censorship, economic pressure, or cultural suppression, he connects the dots in a way that resonates with everyday Americans.
Key angles include: how the CCP extends influence beyond China’s borders; what Americans misunderstand about the regime; how cultural institutions become targets; and what Shen Yun’s experience reveals about a broader strategy now impacting businesses, media, and public discourse.
At a time when China dominates headlines but understanding remains shallow, Leeshai Lemish offers something rare: clarity rooted in firsthand experience.
Relevant Article(s):
FILMMAKERS – UNBROKEN: A Shen Yun Story
UNBROKEN: The Untold Story of Shen Yun | Documentary Trailer
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- What did your firsthand experience in China teach you about how the Chinese Communist Party actually maintains control?
- Can you describe what happened when you were detained and how that shaped your perspective on the regime?
- Why do you think so many Americans sense China is a threat but struggle to explain why?
- How does the CCP extend its influence beyond China’s borders and into American institutions?
- What has Shen Yun Performing Arts experienced that reveals how the CCP targets dissent globally?
- How do censorship and propaganda differ inside China versus how they’re deployed internationally?
- What misconceptions do Western audiences commonly have about life under CCP rule?
- How does your story, and the film Unbroken: The Untold Story of Shen Yun, help people better understand the stakes today?
ABOUT LEESHAI LEMISH…
Leeshai Lemish has been with Shen Yun since 2006. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Chinese history and language from Pomona College, California, and his master’s in international relations from the London School of Economics. He has spent extended periods studying, working, and conducting research throughout East Asia, and has authored articles on Chinese current affairs in both English and Chinese.
He joined Shen Yun Performing Arts as an MC when the company was founded in 2006 and has since emceed close to two thousand performances with the company, taking the stage with Shen Yun at prestigious theaters such as Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center, the London Coliseum, Tokyo Opera City, and many others worldwide. In addition to his performance role, he has tracked and documented on his website over 100 cases of the Chinese Communist Party and its agents trying to sabotage Shen Yun internationally. He has testified on transnational repression in front of Congress, has been a featured guest on television and radio shows around the world, and is the host of the podcast Shen Yun Voices.
ABOUT STEVE LANCE…
Steve Lance is Executive Producer of the film. He focuses on investigative documentaries and cinematic storytelling rooted in real-world events. In UNBROKEN: The Untold Story of Shen Yun, Lance leads the film’s investigative narrative, examining threats, sabotage attempts, and the broader campaign targeting the performing arts company. Lance is also an investigative journalist and Vice President of NTD Television.
TO SCHEDULE AN INTERVIEW, CALL OR TEXT 512-966-0983 OR EMAIL BOOKINGS@SPECIALGUESTS.COM
