The Egyptian uprising was wholly unexpected by journalists, policy makers and scholars. But while it is too early to write the history of that still-unfolding event, we can certainly explain how so many Egyptians ended up in the street starting on January 25, 2011. On the surface, Egypt appeared to be part of a wave of dissent that took shape first in Tunisia with the shocking overthrow of Zine El-Abadine Ben Ali. The temporal proximity of the two revolutions appears to give credence to "wave" theories of democratization, whereby citizens in authoritarian regimes may emulate the actions of successful uprisings in neighboring states.¹ This may make for a nice story, but it is only partially satisfactory as an explanation. Egypt's revolution did not appear out of thin air as a result of Tunisia's uprising. It is best to think of the Tunisian case as the proximate cause and to carefully consider the sequence of events that led millions of Egyptians into the streets to challenge their authoritarian rulers. While the dramatic ouster of Ben Ali in Tunisia certainly inspired the Egyptian protesters — as indicated by the heartfelt thanks to Tunisia offered on sites like Facebook and Twitter after Mubarak's resignation — the uprising itself could never have progressed this far without a series of important developments in recent Egyptian politics. The main cause is the nearly simultaneous emergence, starting in 2004, of digital activists using what Diamond calls "liberation technologies,"² independent journalists wielding press freedoms, organized laborers staging nationwide uprisings, and opposition groups normalizing protest politics — separate movements that have nevertheless managed to mount a frontal challenge to the Egyptian regime. Significantly, none of these critical developments appears to have been substantially affected by U.S. democracy-promotion efforts. By reviewing the history of these efforts, we hope to offer policy makers and scholars a new path forward for democracy promotion in Egypt, one that combines the lessons of the past with the opportunities of the future.