“Bae” and words like it—including “yassss” and “twerk”—originated from black communities and were popular for years before everyone else caught on and participated in their usage. But it doesn’t take long before the fascination gives way to boredom, or even complaints about the so-called “overuse” of such words. Somehow, mainstream (and often white) cultural gatekeepers declare that it’s time to ban them and move on to the next hip trends in slang. And in true fashion, some other word derived from black communities eventually makes it way into everyday conversations again.

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