The Smiths are famous for their cryptic and surrealistic lyrics, but in this case, the message couldn’t be any clearer. “Meat is Murder” is a statement against animal cruelty and the consumption of meat. A cause very dear to the Smiths lead singer Morrissey. 
But why tackle one cause, when you can actually approach two? In the cover, the album title (named after one of its songs) is displayed on the helmet of a Vietnam war soldier.
Ironically, in the original picture, the handwritten message of Marine Corporal Michael Wynn read “Make war not love”. And no, this is not a typo.
In 2019, in an interview, Wynn revealed he was never asked permission for the use of his image, but instead of being upset for not getting a royalty check, his grudge lies on the fact that “they changed the wording”.