Like many students who’ve grown up in the United States, I’ve often been spoon-fed the idea that the U.S. is the greatest, most powerful nation in the world. However, knowing that there is an incentive for countries to overemphasize their importance, I’ve doubted whether we are truly as grand and influential as I’ve been taught. Now that I’ve witnessed how outsiders view the U.S. in my time abroad, I’ve realized our sense of global relevance is unexpectedly skewed.

This realization first came to me in a discussion for my Contemporary Issues in International Development class in Edinburgh, Scotland, during which we talked about the global ramifications of artificial intelligence in governance, security and the environment. As an example, I mentioned when broadcaster Chris Cuomo, a known centrist, reposted a deep-fake of Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez this August, mistaking it for an authentic video of her.

I felt the need to contextualize who Cuomo and Ocasio-Cortez were, in case my Edinburgh peers were not familiar with these figures. However, as the conversation continued, my classmates used plenty of U.S.-based examples themselves. I quickly learned that their interest in U.S. politics was vast, possibly to an extent that was even greater than their interest in their own nation’s politics.

It became clear to me that people here follow U.S. politics closely, so I endeavored to find out why. Having asked one of my peers about the phenomenon, I was struck by her explanation that, as outside observers, people here view what is happening in the U.S. as a trainwreck they can’t look away from.

In the past, the U.S. was seen by many as a global inspiration — a place where democracy thrives and dreams prosper — and a leading nation that sets standards for the rest of the world to strive toward. Historian James Truslow Adams originally coined the term “American Dream” in 1931, but the idea — with its promises of upward mobility, equality and freedom — largely gained popularity from the U.S.’ growing power and economic boom following World War II.

Since then, global perspectives have shifted. The U.S. is still a hegemon — a country with immense dominance on the international scale — in the economic sense, but it appears that international opinions of the U.S. are much less reverent than times past.

Instead of people around the world paying attention to the U.S. because it embodies progress and virtue, they’re paying attention because they’re fascinated by its political regression and chaos.

Ordinary citizens, nations and international organizations alike have all expressed criticisms of how the Trump administration has governed.

In mid-September, a demonstration in Edinburgh captured this dynamic perfectly. Residents from organizations including Democrats Abroad, Unison, Global Justice Now and Stand Up to Racism protested against President Donald Trump’s visit to the United Kingdom, advocating for U.K. representatives to resist conservative pressures and champion peace and equality.

FIFA also made its stance clear in responding to Trump’s threats about preventing certain U.S. cities from hosting their planned 2026 World Cup matches. Earlier this month, the association’s vice president, Victor Montagliani, said in an on-stage interview during a sports business conference, “football is bigger than [current world leaders], and football will survive their regime and their government and their slogans.”

Moreover, Pew Research Center data from June found that in 15 of 24 countries surveyed, favorable views of the U.S. have significantly decreased compared to previous years. For instance, in Mexico, favorable views of the U.S. dropped from 61% in 2024 to 29% in 2025, and similar declines were observed in Canadians’ views as well.

All of this goes to show that the idealized view of the U.S. has continued to crumble since the new administration took office. Although this may feel worrisome, it is also a light at the end of the tunnel in a way; it means that the rest of the world recognizes that people’s rights are being taken away, and we are not isolated in our fight for justice.

As Ocasio-Cortez said in an interview on “All In with Chris Hayes,” “There absolutely is an unprecedented abuse of power, destruction of norms, [and] erosion of our government and our democracy in order to prop up an authoritarian style of governance. … However, they are weaker than they look.”

It is important for us as engaged citizens to remember that we are not powerless, and, in fact, we have much of the world on our side. While every day is filled with headlines on unprecedented changes in government, we can hopefully find a little bit of peace in the knowledge that we are not alone in our efforts and are actually stronger than we seem.

Dor Peretz is a junior writing about United States culture and politics analyzed through the lens of her time studying abroad in her column, “A Broader Perspective,” which runs every other Friday.