This paper discusses the rationale for a new course in the history of American protest music which was offered during 1999 at the College of Mount St. Joseph in Ohio. Noting that the course was team taught by a U.S. history professor and a librarian with expertise in the area, the paper states that the course aimed to survey U.S. history through songs of protest and complaint, thereby telling the history of the United States from the bottom up. The paper lists learning outcomes and states that the course met twice a week for 75 minutes with an enrollment of 21 students. The class examined the following topics: What Is Protest Music?; Spirituals and Work Songs; Songs about Racism; Songs of the Wobblies; Songs of the Depression; Songs of Aunt Molly Jackson; Songs of Sarah Ogan Gunning; Songs of Woody Guthrie; People's Songs and the American Left; Songs of Pete Seeger; Songs of Bob Dylan; Anti-War Songs; Vietnam's Aftermath; The Talking Blues; Songs of the Civil Rights Movement; Songs about the Environment; Songs of Feminism; and Contemporary Protest Music. The paper contains an extensive discography and a 29-item bibliography. (BT)