CHAPEL HILL - UNC system President Erskine Bowles wants a commission to determine whether every state university campus in North Carolina should establish a university code that blocks hate speech.

Bowles' decision came less than a month after four N.C. State University students spray-painted statements that many deemed racially inflammatory on the Free Expression Tunnel on campus.

Bowles met Tuesday afternoon with leaders of the state chapter of the NAACP and saw a photograph of one section of the graffiti for the first time. After the meeting, he declared the graffiti hate speech.

The graffiti suggested shooting President-elect Barack Obama in the head. It also used a racial slur.

The Rev. William J. Barber II, president of the state NAACP chapter, said the words frightened students and should have been considered a crime. He insisted such language ought not be protected under the United States Constitution's right to free speech.

In a letter sent to Bowles on Tuesday, leaders of the state chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union urged caution if university leaders are to consider policies that declare certain language "hate speech."

The four NCSU students responsible for the graffiti have apologized. The student who instigated the paintings will attend diversity training and do community service. No criminal charges were brought against the unnamed students.