On Saturday, Mar. 2, 2024, the Answer Coalition organized marches for the Global Day of Action for Rafah. The marches were organized in dozens of cities across the country, including Washington, D.C. One of the action listings was in Geneseo, NY, on the corner of Main Street and Route 20A. Many students and local residents of Geneseo and Livingston County participated, including members of organizations such as the SUNY Geneseo Peace Action group, as well as the Genesee Valley Citizens for Peace (GVCP), and the local Democratic-Socialists of Americas (DSA).

On Feb. 25, 2024, at 1:00 p.m., outside of Washington, DC’s Israeli Embassy, 25-year-old Aaron Bushnell committed self-immolation as an extreme act of protest against the treatment of the citizens in Gaza. Bushnell live-streamed this act on Twitch—an online video-sharing service. The footage documented the Bushnell walking up to the gates of the building, explaining that he would “no longer be complicit in Genocide,” before continuing to speak, dousing himself in lighter fluid as he did so, then lighting himself on fire. This act has gone viral online, not only for its extreme nature, but for the light it shines on the issue at hand: As Bushnell put it, “I am about to engage in an extreme act of protest. But compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers, it’s not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal.”

This month has been difficult for Western New York zoo lovers as the Buffalo Zoo and the Seneca Park Zoo have both been hit with losses. The Buffalo Zoo announced the death of Koga, their silverback western lowland gorilla, on Thursday, Feb. 15, while the Seneca Park Zoo mourned the death of baby giraffe PJ just two days later on Saturday, Feb. 17.

Earlier this month, the three-inch, two-pound surgery robot spaceMIRA—standing for Miniaturized in Vivo Robotic Assistant—was jettisoned off from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. From there, it was sent to a space station that sits approximately 250 miles above Lincoln, Nebraska, where surgeons would begin the first simulated procedure using the device in a zero-gravity environment. 

On Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, Donald Trump was assigned a trial date of Monday, Mar. 25, 2024. He is accused of exchanging hush money during the 2020 election amid a sex scandal. It appears that Trump and his team's focal concern is how this trial and scandal might jeopardize his current presidential campaign. 

Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024 was set to be a joyous celebration in Kansas City following the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl LVIII victory. Amidst the celebration, however, two minors set off gunshots at the team’s parade just outside Kansas City’s Union Station. 

On the morning of Feb. 20, 2024, around 9:45 a.m., an emergency alert went out to members of the Geneseo campus community. Faculty, students, and staff alike were advised of the following: “Contractors have hit a gas line in the area of Milne Library. Please avoid University Drive in that area. In addition, Blake Hall, including the Multicultural Center, has been closed temporarily while the issue is resolved.” About 10 minutes after this alert was sent out, an additional alert was released stating that the Integrated Science Center (ISC) and Newton had also been evacuated as a precaution. 

On the morning of Feb. 7, 2024, the neighboring Trinidad and Tobago — countries found off the Northeast border of South America’s residents— awoke to a mysterious sight: their coast was “blackened” by an oil spill from a mysteriously capsized ship. This ever-present ecological issue has left scientists and officials stumped. Currently, there is no exact quantity of oil excreted, no party being held responsible, and no known intention behind the act. The impact of this event on the area’s marine life is clear. 

Towards the beginning of January 2024, the number of COVID-19 cases began to rise at a consequential rate in the United States. Although the amount of cases has risen, fortunately, hospitalizations have stayed at a lower rate than in previous years. When United States citizens first experienced COVID-19 in 2020, hospitalizations were teetering at around 100,000 cases and deaths were at around 30,000 per week. In the first week of January 2024, hospitalizations were around 35,000, and death tolls had dropped to 1,600 weekly. Thus, it is evident that the rates have lowered an exceptional amount. 

On Feb. 9, 2024, the Geneseo Student Association (GSA) collaborated with the Office of Diversity and Equality to engage the Geneseo community in a moderated discussion with Angela Yvonne Davis.