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{{short description|Street gang alliance in Los Angeles}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2017}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2017}}
{{Infobox criminal organization
| name = Pirus
| image = File:A1 PiRU.jpeg
| image_size = <!-- defaults to 220px -->
| caption = Piru graffiti
| founded = {{start date and age|1969}}
| founder = Sylvester Puddin Scott, Vincent Benson Owens
| named_after = 
| founding_location = [[Compton, California|Compton]], California, United States
| years_active = 1969–present
| territory = <!-- Any and all additions to this section require a reliable source. -->
| ethnicity = Primarily [[Black American]]
| membership = 
| leaders = 
| activities = Drug trafficking, robbery, extortion and murder
| allies = <!-- Any and all additions to this section require a reliable source. --> [[Bloods]]<ref name="Bloods Street Gang Intelligence Report">[https://info.publicintelligence.net/BloodsStreetGangIntelligenceReport.pdf Bloods Street Gang Intelligence Report] [[Virginia State Police]] (November 2008)</ref>
| rivals = <!-- Any and all additions to this section require a reliable source. --> [[Crips]]<ref name="Bloods Street Gang Intelligence Report"/>
| notable_members = 
}}

The '''Pirus''' ({{IPAc-en|audio=En-us-piru.ogg|ˈ|p|aɪ|r|uː}}) are a subset of the larger [[Bloods]] gang alliance, an [[organized crime]] group in the United States.<ref name="mw-2010">{{Cite web |date=2010-04-06 |title=Pirus |url=https://unitedgangs.com/bloods-2/pirus/ |access-date=2023-03-16 |language=en-US |quote=The Pirus is an umbrella street gang alliance (under the larger alliance, Bloods)}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The name "Piru" is derived from the Piru Street Boys, a gang which was founded in 1969 by Sylvester Scott and Vincent Owens in [[Compton, California|Compton]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Covey |first=Herbert C. |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/768800412 |title=Crips and Bloods : a guide to an American subculture |date=2015 |isbn=978-0-313-39929-9 |location=Santa Barbara, California |pages=27 |oclc=768800412}}</ref> The Piru Street Boys are considered the forerunners to the Bloods,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Carlin |first=Michael Douglas |date=6 November 2019 |title=Piru Origins, Precursor to the Bloods |url=https://centurycity.news/piru-origins-precursor-to-the-bloods-p1557-176.htm |access-date=2023-03-16 |website=centurycity.news |language=en}}</ref> which is why the terms "Piru" and "Blood" are often used interchangeably. However, this interchangeable use of the terms is inaccurate,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Piru Meaning & Origin {{!}} Slang by Dictionary.com |url=https://www.dictionary.com/e/slang/piru/ |access-date=2023-03-16 |website=Dictionary.com |language=en-US |quote=Some people incorrectly interchange the terms Piru and Blood, believing that the two terms mean the same thing.}}</ref> as many non-Piru gangs such as the Denver Lanes and Brims were also instrumental in the formation of the Bloods.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Gann |first=Brian |date=9 June 2011 |title=The Bloods (1972 - ) • |url=https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/bloods-1972/ |access-date=2023-03-16 |website=Black Past |language=en-US}}</ref>

Furthermore, the Pirus are an alliance of street gangs within the larger Bloods alliance,<ref name="mw-2010" /> meaning that not all Bloods sets will identify as "Pirus".

== History ==
In 1969, a gang called the Piru Street Boys was founded by Sylvester Scott and Vincent Owens. According to some sources, the Piru Street Boys were initially associated with the [[Crips]],<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cawthorne |first=Nigel |title=The World's Most Evil Gangsters |publisher=John Blake |year=2010 |isbn=9781784184339 |quote=Their origins lay in the Piru Street Boys, who once wore the blue bandana of the Crips gang and were known, for a short time, as the Piru Street Crips}}</ref> but later had a falling-out. However, other sources dispute any alliance, claiming that the Piru Street Boys were victimised by the Crips.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Flores |first=R. D. |date=October 1997 |title=Crips and Bloods |url=https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/crips-and-bloods |access-date=2023-03-16 |website=www.ojp.gov |quote=Other gangs began to form to defend themselves against the Crips. Two of these gangs were the GnG Mob, Brims and the Pirus.}}</ref> Nevertheless, by the early 1970s, the Piru Street Boys formed an alliance with other smaller street gangs such as the Brims, Bishops and Denver Lanes, which also opposed the Crips.<ref name="Commonwealth of Virginia Department of State Police">{{Cite web |title=Bloods Street Gang Intelligence Report |url=https://info.publicintelligence.net/BloodsStreetGangIntelligenceReport.pdf |publisher=Commonwealth of Virginia Department of State Police |page=4 |quote=The local sets of anti-Crips included the Piru Street Boys, the LA Brims, the Denver Lanes, the Inglewood Family, the Swans, and the Pueblo Bishops}}</ref> This alliance became known as the Bloods, as the members of this alliance called each other "blood".<ref name="Commonwealth of Virginia Department of State Police" />

Eventually, more Piru sets would form. There are 15 known Piru sets within the [[Greater Los Angeles]] area.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2010-04-06 |title=Pirus |url=https://unitedgangs.com/bloods-2/pirus/ |access-date=2023-03-16 |language=en-US}}</ref> Piru sets have fought against each other. For example, the [[Mob Piru]] and [[Fruit Town Piru]] developed a rivalry by the late 1990s, which resulted in the murders of several Mob Pirus associated with [[Death Row Records]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Phillips |first=Chuck |date=August 1, 2003 |title=As Associates Fall, Is ‘Suge’ Next? |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-aug-01-fi-suge1-story.html |access-date=July 20, 2024 |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> 
[[File:Red bandana.jpg|thumb|Piru sets often use burgundy or red [[Kerchief|bandanas]] as a form of identification, although other colors may be used to evade detection from law enforcement<ref>{{Cite book |last=Finley |first=Laura L. |title=Gangland: An Encyclopedia of Gang Life from Cradle to Grave [2 Volumes] |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2018 |isbn=9781440844744 |pages=38}}</ref>  ]]

== Piru sets ==
* [[Cedar Block Piru]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Chris |date=June 25, 2008 |title=The Game gets back to roots |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-jun-25-et-game25-story.html |access-date=July 20, 2024 |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>
* [[Elm Street Piru]]<ref name="Roberts-2018">{{Cite web |last=Roberts |first=Randall |last2=Priya |first2=Krishnakumar |date=January 19, 2018 |title=Rap's Main Street: The music of Rosecrans Avenue |url=https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-et-rosecrans-avenue-music/ |access-date=July 20, 2024 |website=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>
* [[Fruit Town Piru]]<ref name="Roberts-2018" />
* [[Lueders Park Piru]]<ref name="Roberts-2018" />
* [[Mob Piru]]
* [[Tree Top Piru]]
* [[Piru|Westside Piru]]

== In popular culture ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=October 2024}}
* The song "[[Piru Love]]" from ''[[Bangin' on Wax]]'' (1993) by [[Bloods & Crips]] makes references to various Piru sets, including Holly Hood, [[Elm Street Piru|Elm Street]] and Lueders Park.
* The song "[[M.A.A.D City]]" from ''[[good kid, m.A.A.d city]]'' (2012) by [[Kendrick Lamar]] makes references to the Bloods, being Pirus particularly with the line "If Pirus and Crips, all got along" in the song.
* In the song "[[Strange Clouds (song)|Strange Clouds]]" from ''[[Strange Clouds (album)|Strange Clouds]]'' (2012) by [[B.o.B.]] featuring [[Lil Wayne]], [[Lil Wayne]] references the Piru: "Piru, gangsters, outlaws" at the end of his verse.
* In the song "Let The Beat Build" from [[Tha Carter III]] (2008) by [[Lil Wayne]], [[Lil Wayne]] references the Piru: "I can buy you, but I wouldn't try you, feed you to Piru".
* In the song "[[Stop Breathing (song)|Stop Breathing]]" from [[Whole Lotta Red]] (2020)  by [[Playboi Carti|Playboi Carti]], he references the Piru:"I’m hangin' with the Pirus, hangin' with the Fives".

==See also==
* [[African-American organized crime]]
* [[Gangs in Los Angeles]]
* [[List of California street gangs]]

== References ==
<references />
{{Bloods}}
{{Organized crime groups in the United States}}
{{Organized crime groups in Los Angeles}}

[[Category:Organizations established in 1969]]
[[Category:1969 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Bloods sets]]
[[Category:African-American history in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:Compton, California]]