The staff at the center said they are concerned about the safety of their employees.
The National Butterfly Center (NBC), located in Texas near the U.S. and Mexico border, has decided to close until further notice after they say they have become the target of QAnon conspiracy theorists and are worried about their safety. The center had previously become a target of the fight for the border wall because of its refusal to make room for it on the property,
They have also been targeted by conspiracy theorists claiming that immigrants are being smuggled across the border on the property with the facility’s help.
“The safety of our staff and visitors is our primary concern," Jeffrey Glassberg, president of the North American Butterfly Association, which runs the organization, said in a statement.
The center was previously closed from Jan. 28-30 due to a “We Stand America” event taking place 20 minutes from the property. Sanctuary Executive Director Marianna Trevino Wright told Inside Edition Digital that days before the event and the decision to close for those three days, two women showed up to the property demanding to see “the illegals crossing on rafts.”
They reported the incident to police, but after being told by a former official that they may have been a target for the rally, they decided to close, Trevino-Wright told Inside Edition Digital.
In 2020, a court ruled that building the wall on the 100-acre property would violate the center’s property rights. Since then, fake images have been shared online, claiming that the center has a dock for illegal immigrants to come into the country. The image has been doctored.
“It’s just not worth the safety of our visitors and our guests,” Trevino Wright told Inside Edition Digital last week.
It is not clear when the center is set to reopen. Employees will still receive their salary during the closure, according to Glassberg.
"We look forward to reopening, soon, when the authorities and the professionals who are helping us get past this situation give us the green light," Glassberg said.
