Stack Exchange on the matter

“Lately, I've been noticing a lot of people using folks (sometimes spelled folx) instead of people. This seems especially prevalent among left-leaning sources that pride themselves on inclusion.

This newly widespread usage of folks seems unusual given that the word until recently was seen in a fairly negative light. Both President Obama and President Bush were criticized for using it in speeches on serious topics, and it was typically dismissed as too informal or colloquial. I feel like it also was associated more with Southern redneck stereotypes (much like ain't and y'all) rather than being "mainstream."

One reason I've seen for the usage of folks is to replace guys as a gender-neutral term for a group of people. An Atlantic article, "The Problem with 'Hey Guys'", describes people consciously choosing to replace guys with the gender-neutral folks (it also mentions y'all), and says that folks is preferable to people because people is "too often pushy and impersonal."

They absolutely turn our language against us, just like rewriting the definition of vaccine in the dictionary to fit their agenda.

That’s why it bothers me. I’m now awake, and these attempts to play mind games are constant.