Press advocates protest charges against journalist Glenn Greenwald

Protesters gathered outside the Brazilian Embassy in Washington, D.C. to rebuke the government of President Jair Bolsonaro.

Demonstrators spoke out after federal prosecutors in Brazil charged American journalist Glenn Greenwald with cybercrimes.

This is an extremely dangerous move by the government of Brazil. It cannot stand because journalism is more important than governments because journalism is supposed to support the public.

The charges come less than a year after Greenwald published a series of articles based on leaked messages.

The articles exposed alleged corruption, raising ethics concerns about Brazil's justice system.

Politicians, free press advocates and journalists have decried the charges as politically motivated and part of a larger effort to curb free speech.

He's that tough and that self-directed. That’s something to admire and we do admire it. Glenn Greenwald, we are rooting for you tonight.

Greenwald has denied wrongdoing.

We're going to defend a free press like we always have. We’re not going to be intimidated by the Bolsonaro government.

In a 95-page criminal complaint, prosecutors accused Greenwald of directly helping hackers obtain classified information, rather than just reporting on it.

A member of Brazil’s supreme court determined last year that Bolsonaro's administration should drop its investigation into Greenwald because it violated his press freedom rights.

But in January, Brazil's federal prosecutor's office said that it found audio recordings, which, they argued, implicated Greenwald.

Bolsonaro's administration has previously come under scrutiny for allegedly stifling press freedom. The latest charges against Greenwald are likely to amplify those concerns.

Contains footage from CNN.