"Eat beans, not beings” is a vegan saying that has been printed on many images. The slogan was used in December 1989 by the group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
Newspapers.com
8 December 1989, Charlotte (NC) Observer, “‘Lobzilla’ Lives” by John Vaughan, pg. 4B, col. 1:
(Cam—ed.) MacQueen, who arrived in Charlotte wearing a sticker that said “Eat Beans Not Beings,” has had experience rescuing lobsters.
Newspapers.com
8 December 1989, News-Press (Fort Myers, FL), “Northern Lites,” pg. 13A, col. 3:
“Oh, he’s so beautiful,” said Cam MacQueen, of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, who accompanied the lobster which traveled in an icebox labeled: “Eat beans, not beings.”
Newspapers.com
11 June 1990, Los Angeles (CA) Times, “Thousands Join D.C. Animal Rights Rally” by David G. Savage, pg. A4, col. 2:
WASHINGTON—In the animal rights movement’s largest gathering ever, thousands marched to Capitol Hill on Sunday, calling on Congress to limit the use of animals in product research and urging Americans to “Eat Beans, Not Beings.”
Google Books
Macrocosm USA:
Possibilities for a New Progressive Era
By Sandi Brockway
Cambria, CA: Macrocosm USA, Incorporated
1992
Pg. 66:
One recent issue of PETA News contained a page of slogans (“MEAT IS MURDER” and “EAT BEANS NOT BEINGS") that could be xeroxed onto sticky labels for easy posting, as well as a “Barf Bag” to be mailed to L’Oreal objecting to that company’s animal testing.
Google Books
Strange Days Indeed:
Memories of the Old World
By Stuart Ward
Montague, CA: Desert Sage Books
2007
Pg. 368:
Another specialized in oversize T-shirts, window decals and bumper stickers. Some of the more humorous messages offered included:
Save Your A/C - Drive Naked!
Don’t Arrest Me I was Born This Way
Eat Beans, not Beings
Twitter
joshua may
@notjosh
@tokicat i got a sweet “eat beans, not beings” badge tonight..sage advice!
8:24 AM · Feb 22, 2009·Twitter Web Client
Twitter
Marvin Double
@mdouble
Replying to @KenLudwig
@KenLudwig I’m a vegetarian so the whole cow corn thing doesn’t apply 
Eat Beans not Beings it makes a big difference to the world
1:54 PM · Aug 27, 2009·Twitter Web Client
Google Books
Title Eat Beans Not Beings - Notebook
Author Esther Publishing
Publisher
ISBN 1080288910, 9781080288915
Length 122 pages
Twitter
Vegan Posters
@veganposters
Eat beans. Not beings. - Anon #vegan
3:10 AM · Dec 18, 2019·VeganPosters
Twitter
Carol Williams
@cushpig
Eat beans not beings, eat plants not animals, do not support violence to animals and damage to this planet. Be healthier by switching to a plant based diet. It has never been easier than it is nowadays. #Vegan #TuesdayThoughts
4:09 AM · Sep 1, 2020·Twitter Web App
Above, a 1934 plaque from the Big Apple Night Club at West 135th Street and Seventh Avenue in Harlem. Discarded as trash in 2006. Now a Popeyes fast food restaurant on Google Maps.
Recent entries:
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“Online flirting is all fun and games until someone buys a plane ticket” (5/27)
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“Only in America can you get arrested for feeding the homeless & be sentenced to community service” (5/27)
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“In Texas, the shortest distance between two points is likely under construction” (5/27)
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Entry in progress—BP (5/26)
More new entries...
Above, Big Apple Corner at 54th Street and Broadway in Manhattan. Google Maps.
Above, John J. Fitz Gerald, from the Aug. 15, 1931, Binghamton (NY) Press, pg. 14.
Listen to Robert Emmerich introduce "The Big Apple," a hit song from 1937. Music written by Bob and performed by Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven with Bob on piano. Lyrics written by Buddy Bernier and sung by Edythe Wright. Audio provided by Dorothy Emmerich.
Also listen to a 1937 "The Big Apple" song by Ozzie Nelson and his Orchestra. See a 1929 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald and a 1931 photo of John J. Fitz Gerald.
This site is edited by Barry Popik.