text:  Then she had to face this question of whether a young black woman could write the poetry that she claimed to write. By the way, this would be a claim that August Wilson would have to make, the prominent African-American playwright in this country who wrote the play Fences and so many others. He was questioned about his writing capabilities in the Pittsburgh public schools, and he left school. They didn't believe he could have written so well. Phyllis Whitley's story continues here on Our American Story.