The Pirus are an African-American street gang alliance founded in 1969 and based in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...

. The Pirus comprise various sub-groups, known as "sets". These distinguish themselves by

colors Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...

, clothing, operations, and political ideas. Some may be in direct conflict with each other. Originating in

Compton, California Compton is a city in southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated south of downtown Los Angeles. Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county and, on May 11, 1888, was the eighth city in Los Angeles County to incorporat ...

, the alliance has spread throughout

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the List of the most populous counties in the United States, most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, ...

and other areas of the United States.

History

In 1969, the Pirus were created by teenagers and young black men based in Compton, California. The term originally refers to Piru Street, a residential street in Compton and neighboring Willowbrook. It has been adapted as a

backronym A backronym is an acronym formed from an already existing word by expanding its letters into the words of a phrase. Backronyms may be invented with either serious or humorous intent, or they may be a type of false etymology or folk etymology. The ...

for "Powerful Indestructible Revengeful United" or, alternatively, "Powerful Indestructible Ruthless Untouchables". In 1969 the Pirus joined the Crip alliance made by smaller gangs, creating together a large "set" of the Crips. At that time, there were various sets throughout the region of Los Angeles, California. However, these sets were small groups of hustlers. In 1969, fifteen-year-old Raymond Washington started the Crips street gang with friends from his neighborhood on the East Side of

South Central Los Angeles South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of downtown. It is "defined on Los Angeles city maps as a ...

. The Crips began to attack hustler groups and cliques in order to create a larger organization. The Pirus soon joined with the Brims gang, a victim of the Crips attacks. Members in jail found each other and created the

Bloods The Bloods are a primarily African-American street gang founded in Los Angeles, California. The gang is widely known for its rivalry with the Crips. It is identified by the red color worn by its members and by particular gang symbols, includ ...

. This new group developed from a term they used to address one another. Following this, new inmates entering the LA County Jail were asked by intake/deputies, "Who do you run with, the Crips or the Bloods?" Those who were victimized by the Crips joined the Pirus and Brims, and ran with the Blood identity, which is how the Blood gang was formed. The Bloods started in jail in LA County in 1974, and the Pirus and Brims both formed on the streets in 1969.

Subsets

A notorious subset of the Pirus, Tree Top Pirus has several territories, stretching from

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

(mostly

, where the gang originated) to

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...

(where a popular branch of the gang is based). This gang is notoriously known for its excessive violence and several members have been convicted of

violent crimes A violent crime, violent felony, crime of violence or crime of a violent nature is a crime in which an offender or perpetrator uses or threatens to use harmful force upon a victim. This entails both crimes in which the violent act is the objecti ...

, such as Michelle “Michelle Hell” Hebron, a violent and notorious criminal and high-ranking member of the Tree Top Pirus. Leader of the female branch of Tree Top Pirus (known as Tree Top Pirettes) in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore wa ...

, she was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2010 for drug trafficking and murder. Another notorious case involving the Tree Top Pirus took place in 2017, when a dangerous member of the

Texan Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by b ...

branch of the gang, Javan Oxavia Williams, killed two men, Charlie Bennett Jr. and Tonius Wayne Frank, killed 2 dogs (both owned by Tonius Wayne Frank) and seriously injured a woman, that although her identity was not revealed, it was confirmed in the investigations that she was the girlfriend of one of the fatal victims, Charlie Bennett Jr. Both crimes took place in

Harris County, Texas Harris County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas; as of the 2020 census, the population was 4,731,145, making it the most populous county in Texas and the third most populous county in the United States. Its county seat is Houston, ...

and due to the seriousness of the crimes, in December 2021, he was sentenced to

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes fo ...

with no chance of parole. A subset, Murdaland Mafia Pirus, was created in

. In 2018, Dontray Johnson was convicted of murder for shooting and killing two fellow members in November 2012 for violating rules of the gang. Johnson had posted on his

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dust ...

profile, "198 n risen" referring to Baltimore's homicide toll of that year.

In media

Films

West Side Pirus are shown as prominent characters in the 2020 feature film ''Bompton Had a Dream''. The lead character, Phoolie, is a West Side Piru, and the film was entirely shot in the Piru side of Compton.

Music

Compton Pirus are mentioned in

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his progressive musical styles and socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generat ...

's song ''Ronald Reagan Era'' from his 2011 studio album ''

Section.80 ''Section.80'' is the debut studio album by American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was released on July 2, 2011, by Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE). In the years leading up to its release, Lamar previously produced various mixtapes under the moniker K.D ...

'', as well as in his song '' M.A.A.D City'' from his 2012 studio album ''

Good Kid, M.A.A.D City ''Good Kid, M.A.A.D City'' (stylized as ''good kid, m.A.A.d city'') is the second studio album by American rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was released on October 22, 2012, through Top Dawg Entertainment, Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records ...

''.

References

External links

Tree-Top Piru Gang Leader Sentenced to 25 Years for Racketeering Conspiracy: Defendant Led Violent Gang from Jail Through Phone Calls and Letters
{{Organized crime groups in America Organizations established in 1969 1969 establishments in California Bloods sets African-American history in Los Angeles Compton, California