Final answer:
Thoreau's rebuttal is summarized by the obligation to right government wrongs. His philosophy of civil disobedience advocates resisting unjust government actions and has inspired global nonviolent resistance movements.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that summarizes Thoreau's rebuttal to a counterargument mentioned in the excerpt is that it is the duty of every American to right any wrong they see in their government. This idea is embedded in Thoreau's philosophy of civil disobedience and his insistence on individual freedom from unjust governmental interference. Thoreau's assertion that "Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison" speaks to the moral responsibility individuals have to resist and not cooperate with an unjust government, as he did by not paying his poll tax in protest against slavery and the Mexican-American War.
Thoreau's work encouraged individuals to value their conscience over the dictates of the government and to embrace nonviolent resistance in the face of tyranny or injustice. His example of passive resistance, such as accepting an unjust arrest to make a point, has inspired social and political movements worldwide, influencing figures like Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. Thoreau advocated for individual freedom and the duty to refuse to support a government he believed was immoral, emphasizing a self-reliant lifestyle and the pursuit of greater individualism as seen in his book Walden; or, Life in the Woods.