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Thousands of Communist party members and supporters have marched across downtown Moscow to mark the centennial of the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution even as the Russian government is ignoring the anniversary.

Participants in Tuesday's march walked across the city's main Tverskaya Street downtown and rallied in front on the Bolshoi Theater.

During Soviet times, Nov. 7 was commemorated as a major state holiday, with grand military parades and demonstrations on Red Square. Russia stopped celebrating it after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union, but the Communists continue to honor the date.

The government's reluctance to recognize the still-polarizing event reflects deep divisions over the revolution in Russian society. A recent nationwide poll showed public opinion on whether the revolution was positive or negative for the country split almost evenly.