Civil Disobedience Civil disobedience is the refusal to obey civil laws. This refusal is in the form of nonviolence. People who use civil disobedience are usually protesting a law that they think is unjust. Usually, they are also willing to accept any penalty like imprisonment. Henry David Thoreau was born in 1817 at Concord, Massachusetts. He was Educated at Harvard University. During his early years Henry spent most of his time walking in the wilderness or talking with his mentor and friend Ralph Waldo Emerson. In July of 1846, Henry needed ....