persecution vs ill-usage

persecution and ill-usage both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
persecution	Yes	No	No	No
ill-usage	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, ill-usage is a hypernym of persecution; that is, ill-usage is a word with a broader meaning than persecution:

persecution: the act of persecuting (especially on the basis of race or religion)
ill-usage: cruel or inhumane treatment

Other hypernyms of persecution include abuse, ill-treatment, maltreatment.

persecution (noun)	ill-usage (noun)
the act of persecuting (especially on the basis of race or religion)	cruel or inhumane treatment