- The butterfly center in the middle of a right-wing conspiracy campaign is closing indefinitely.
- It was forced to briefly close last weekend, citing threats linked to a pro-Trump border wall event.
- The North American Butterfly Association said it would reopen when it is given a "green light."
The National Butterfly Center, which has been caught in the middle of a right-wing conspiracy campaign, is closing indefinitely, according to a notice posted to its website on Wednesday.
"We regret to announce that the National Butterfly Center will be closed to the public — both members and visitors — for the immediate future," the notice said.
The center, which sits at the Texas-Mexico border in Mission, Texas, was forced to close for three days last weekend, citing mounting threats linked to a pro-Trump border wall event and years of baseless human trafficking conspiracy theories promoted by Brian Kolfage, the founder of We Build The Wall.
On Tuesday, however, the center wrote on Twitter that it had resumed operations in "limited fashion, for everyone's safety."
But Wednesday's notice said that the decision to close indefinitely was made "in the wake of recent events targeting the center."
Kolfage baselessly said in November 2019 that the center was involved in human trafficking, after local officials and others had raised concerns about the ecological impact of building a border wall near the center's 100-acres of land.
The butterfly center sued Kolfage, We Build the Wall, and associated construction companies in December 2019 — specifically alleging Kolfage's harassment campaign defamed the center.
Since then, the center has been visited by individuals associated with far-right extremist groups like the Oath Keepers and Three Percenters, and has been targeted by conspiracy theorists, My Rio Grande Valley News reported.
Jeffrey Glassberg, president and founder of the North American Butterfly Association, said in a statement shared by the National Butterfly Center that the safety of visitors and staff is a "primary concern," and that the center will reopen when authorities give a "green light."