Many of the faces of the white-power demonstrators in Charlottesville were those of young people. But how do young Americans become young American Nazis?

Are far-right parents indoctrinating their kids to believe in and fight for white supremacy? In some cases, perhaps. More likely, experts say, is that some teenagers embrace hate groups because they feel as if they have few other options. Hate groups provide a sense of belonging, a sense that members are part of something.

Shannon Martinez of Athens is now 43 and the mother of seven children. But when she was a teenager, Martinez says, she never felt as if she fit in.

“I hated everybody,” Martinez said. “To be a part of a hate group, all I had to say was ‘I hate black people, I hate Jews and I hate non-whites.’ That was the price of admission. I was a white-power skinhead.”

Experts who study hate groups say that many young people turn to neo-Nazi or Klan factions because they have few other options. Finding young adulthood a big, empty place, they are readily radicalized by hate groups that offer a sense of identity and belonging. Many white supremacists share an ironic bond with American Islamists: They are not indoctrinated by radical far-right parents so much as they are seduced by the Internet.

“Members do seem to be getting younger and while there are a number of reasons people join, it often seems to be filling a void in their lives,” said Paul Becker, a sociology professor at the University of Dayton who has written extensively about hate crimes, white supremacy and anti-government movements. “So these groups provide a place to belong, friends, and give their lives a goal or purpose. Therefore, something like coming from a broken home or experiencing abuse could be a factor in someone joining these types of groups.”

The skinhead years were a long time ago. But with the images coming out of Charlottesville last weekend, the threat of more racially inspired protests and violence on the horizon, and the tepid response from the White House, those years don’t seem quite so distant.

With the face of racist extremism seemingly getting younger, Martinez is one of the lucky ones. She got out and now she is trying to pull others out by working with an organization dedicated to helping people repudiate white supremacy.

“There is no new racism. There is no new dark place or uptick in racism,” Martinez said. “But there is a pendulum dynamic. When one end of the political spectrum is given more voice and credence, there is always a backlash. It has become easier for those people to come out in the open because of the climate created since Trump became a viable candidate.”