Persecute /ˈpɜː. sɪ. kjuːt/ /ˈpɝː-/ verb [ t ] to treat someone unfairly or cruelly over a long period of time because of their race, religion

current /ˈkʌr. ə nt/ /ˈkɝː-/ noun [ C ] FEELING
2. a particular opinion or feeling that a group of people have
There is a growing current of support for green issues among voters.
disillusion /ˌdɪs.ɪˈluː.ʒ ə n/ verb [ T ]
to disappoint someone by telling them the unpleasant truth about something or someone that they had a good opinion of, or respected
I hate to/I'm sorry to disillusion you, but pregnancy is not always wonderful - I was sick every day for six months.
from scratch
from the beginning, without using anything that already exists
Ben built the shed from scratch.
vice /vaɪs/ noun NOT MORAL
1. [ C or U ] (a) moral fault or weakness in someone's character
Greed, pride, envy, dishonesty and lust are considered to be vices.
mainly humorous My one real vice (= bad habit) is chocolate.
2. [ U ] illegal and immoral activities, especially involving illegal sex, drugs, etc.
The chief of police said that he was committed to wiping out vice in the city.
vice /vaɪs/ noun TOOL
3. ( US usually vise ) [ C ] mainly UK a tool with two parts which can be moved together by tightening a screw so that an object can be held firmly between them while it is being worked on
Vices are often used to hold pieces of wood that are being cut or smoothed.
Her hand tightened like a vice around his arm.
virtue /ˈvɜː.tjuː/ /ˈvɝː-/ noun GOOD MORALS
1. [ C or U ] a good moral quality in a person, or the general quality of goodness in people
Patience is a virtue.
Compare vice
virtue /ˈvɜː.tjuː/ /ˈvɝː-/ noun ADVANTAGE
2. [ C or U ] (an) advantage or good thing
It always looks odd to see an actress on TV extolling (= praising) the virtues of washing-up liquid.
Would there be any virtue in taking an earlier train?
moral /ˈmɒr. ə l/ /ˈmɔːr-/ adjective
1. relating to the standards of good or bad behaviour, fairness, honesty, etc. which each person believes in, rather than to laws
It's her moral obligation to tell the police what she knows.
It is not part of a novelist's job to make a moral judgment .
She was the only politician to condemn the proposed law on moral grounds (= for moral reasons) .
The Democrats are attempting to capture the moral high ground (= are trying to appear more honest and good than the other political parties) .
Compare amoral ; immoral