Dissidents, Immigrants, Bankers, Police

We distrust writers
Who reach for the most
Brutal examples

Of human actions
Against their fellows
Or fellow creatures

To zoom in on them.
Humans are awful.
You didn’t invent

Awful in this world.
Bear in mind villain,
Common English word,

Had its roots in terms
For peasants, rustics,
Farmers, farms, and clans.

You’d like a villain
To be worthless, less
Than worth protecting.

Consider the path
That word took to you,
Through race, tribe, and class.

Either all of you
Are worth protecting
Or not one of you.