BEN CADY AND DANIEL BRITT

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Hundreds Gather to Protest Start of War with Iraq

As artillery exploded in the streets of Baghdad on the first day of war with Iraq, several hundred protesters gathered on Bidwell Parkway in Buffalo to voice their opposition.Standing on a wooden platform, more than a dozen speakers addressed a spirited, rain-soaked audience of activists, community members and local college students."We are here to kick off a resistance that has never been seen before," said protester Beverly Hiestand of the group International Act Now to Stop War and Eradicate Racism.