( CNN ) -- A push for some social media love by the New York Police Department backfired badly , with Twitter users taking advantage of the invitation to mock the NYPD and other departments nationwide . The department on Tuesday asked folks to post photos of themselves with its officers , using the hashtag # myNYPD . The response was swift and overwhelmingly negative as tweeters hijacked the hashtag to post photos they said showed police brutality or misconduct . `` Free Massages from the # NYPD . What does YOUR Police Department offer ? '' tweeted @ OccupyWallStNYC , which posted an image of officers holding a man , seemingly screaming , with his arms behind his back , on top of a car . `` The # NYPD will also help you de-tangle your hair , '' tweeted @ MoreAndAgain , posting a photo of an officer pulling the hair of a person who appears to be under arrest . Similar hashtags sprang up around the country , with # MyLAPD , # MyCPD and # MyAPD among those trending Wednesday morning . In a tweet that showed a Chicago police officer who appeared ready to punch someone with a camera , @ 70torinoman quipped , `` # myCPD extending his fist out to the community . '' The tag # MyAPD referred to Albuquerque , New Mexico , where a Justice Department report recently blasted what it called a long history of police brutality and unnecessary deadly force . But a New York police spokeswoman defended the campaign despite the backlash . `` The NYPD is creating new ways to communicate effectively with the community . Twitter provides an open forum for an uncensored exchange and this is an open dialogue good for our city , '' said Deputy Chief Kim Y. Royster . Indeed , the posts were n't all bad . `` ( M ) y photo from my ride along with the boys from the 90th pct , '' tweeted @ poshwonderwoman , showing a woman posing alongside three smiling officers . One user even criticized the backlash . `` People are so lame , there 's a lot of good cops out there as well , '' tweeted â€ .
New hashtags spring up mocking police in several U.S. cities . New York police ask folks on Twitter to post photos , using hashtag # myNYPD . The response was swift -- and overwhelmingly negative . A spokeswoman defends the campaign : `` This is an open dialogue good for our city ''