JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Accusations of racism have engulfed a South African school after a photograph appearing to show white and black children separated by race circulated on social media.

Authorities are investigating the school, which says it does not tolerate racism and was besieged by protesters alleging the photograph showed that South Africa's legacy of white minority rule remains entrenched in places.

The uproar over the school in Schweizer-Reneke, a town in North West province, follows other disputes over race in a country that earned the world's admiration for efforts to reconcile when the bitter era of apartheid ended in 1994.

The school photograph shows white and black children of around five years old sitting separately in a classroom. Some photos that emerged later show the same white and black children sitting together.