The Raleigh Police Department in North Carolina is facing blowback after categorizing protesting as a "non-essential activity."

The police department is facing scrutiny after arresting protesters in downtown Raleigh on Tuesday, asserting that such activity is in violation of the governor's executive order limiting outdoor activities amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"What part of the governor's order was violated here?" one social media user asked.

"Protesting is a non-essential activity," the police department responded.

According to local media, protesters called for the reopening of businesses, holding signs that said "Reopen NC," "Freedom is not free," and "#ReopenNC #Tyranny."

The Washington Examiner reached out to the Raleigh Police Department but did not receive a response for publication.

Raleigh police just emailed this statement regarding today’s protest @WNCN pic.twitter.com/X0ioXYA1gj — Michael Hyland (@MichaelWNCN) April 14, 2020

Protesting is a non-essential activity. — Raleigh Police (@raleighpolice) April 14, 2020

Shortly after, outrage was expressed on social media, with some accusing the police of deeming the First Amendment "non-essential."

The Raleigh Police have declared the First Amendment non-essential. If you support this, you're a coward and a bad American. It's that simple. https://t.co/qpvOi3Pu9r — Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) April 14, 2020

Arrest the police. They are proving non-essential. https://t.co/VrWyWijelu — Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) April 14, 2020

We were smart not to put our gestapo in jackboots. Too on the nose.



I expect millions of decent, patriotic policemen all over the country will join in protesting this bullshit. https://t.co/nxfxWLHeCy — Jeremy Boreing (@JeremyDBoreing) April 14, 2020

Said every authoritarian dictator ever. https://t.co/f6fvDuhWVx — Liz Wheeler (@Liz_Wheeler) April 14, 2020

UPDATE: Following criticism, the Raleigh Police Department issued a statement doubling down on the arrests they made Tuesday. "In these unprecedented times and unusual circumstances, both the Governor and the County have declared a state of emergency," the statement read in part. "Under these current and temporary declarations, protesting is not listed as an essential function."

"We simply want everyone to be safe during this very serious public health crisis," the department added.