Final answer:
Post-Boston Massacre, the Sons of Liberty, including figures like John Hancock and Samuel Adams, continued advocating for independence, while leaders such as John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin played critical roles in moving towards the Declaration of Independence.
Step-by-step explanation:
After the Boston Massacre, prominent members of the Sons of Liberty such as John Hancock and Samuel Adams continued to foster a propaganda campaign for independence. Despite the trials and eventual acquittal of the British soldiers involved in the Massacre, the Sons of Liberty's efforts, including Paul Revere's influential engraving, fanned the flames of rebellion among the colonists. Notable figures such as John Adams, although he defended the soldiers for their legal rights, along with Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and Benjamin Franklin, championed the cause of independence, leading to the drafting of the Olive Branch Petition, and eventually, the Declaration of Independence.