Shannon Foley Martinez spoke at the Cranberry Public Library about combating hate and white supremacy on social media.

CRANBERRY TWP — A former white supremacist spoke about bringing awareness to social media content that can be marketed toward negative emotions such as hate and rage during a seminar at Cranberry Public Library Monday night.

Shannon Foley Martinez began her presentation by saying that people who feel worthless are most susceptible to coping with their issues through violence-based extremism.

She said her talk was to explain “the risk of dehumanization and give a brief synopsis of my story, how I got involved in violent white supremacy and eventually got out.”

Martinez shared that she was sexually assaulted at age 15 and turned the negative emotions she felt into rage. She said the feelings of worthlessness and rage are what drew her to white supremacy groups.

“I could walk into a room and have people be afraid of me,” Martinez said. “I had wanted to be a martyr for this cause.”

After leaving white supremacy, Martinez began mentoring people leaving the belief system. She has since mentored 100 people. Some even lived with her during transitional periods of life.

“Hate and violence are emotionally driven, not ideologically driven,” Martinez said. “I start by looking at these people and saying, 'How do I help you thrive as a human being,' so their needs will be met, and they won't turn to violence.”

Martinez said it's easier to get caught up in violent extremism like white supremacy in the digital age.

“Because of social media, it's certain you'll collide with this content, these communities and these ideas,” Martinez said.

“We need to take these skill sets to our online interactions because everything you do online is marketing (yourself),” Martinez said.

The event, hosted by Classrooms Without Borders, included a crowd consisting of Seneca Valley students, faculty and community members.

Martinez outlined three points to utilize when analyzing potentially manipulative media: how the content makes you feel, why it makes you feel that way and what the creator hopes to accomplish by posting the content.

James Lucot, honors history teacher at Seneca Valley High School, organized the event and said he loved that the program Classrooms Without Borders helps him meet people like Martinez.

“I find things like this for my students, and I have to share it with them,” Lucot said.