Sexual assault in Egypt, Iraqi-Americans on U.S. intervention, and sexism in Brazilian soccer

While sexual harassment has been a problem in Egypt for some time, sexual assaults are up dramatically since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak in 2011. Last week several women’s rights groups said they’d documented more than 250 cases of mass rape and sexual assault over a 15-month period, ending in January. There were several more attacks last weekend as Egyptians celebrated their new president, who immediately ordered a crackdown on sexual harassment. Hania Sholkamy an Egyptian social anthropologist and research professor at the American University of Cairo, tells us why she thinks violence against women is on the rise.
Then, how do Iraqi-Americans living in the U.S. interpret the dramatic events now unfolding in Iraq? BBC reporter Aleem Maqbool went to the town of Dearborn in Michigan, which is famous for its large Arab population (around half the town describe themselves as Arab-American). He asked Iraqi-Americans there who they think is to blame for the current crisis in Iraq, and what action they think the U.S. should now take.
And, at one point in history, women and girls were actually banned from legally playing soccer. That’s no longer the case but there is little opportunity for women and girls to play. Ellen Brady, a junior at Macalester College and a member of their soccer team, is currently spending the semester abroad in Niteroi, Brazil, where she’s also joined two women’s teams. Many of her teammates don’t even tell their families they’re on a soccer team, because this isn’t something that is necessarily encouraged for young women. Ellen joins us to tell us more about her experience as a female soccer player in Brazil.
Then, A recent study suggests that learning a new language -- even if you do it when you’re older -- can boost brain power. Researchers at the University of Edinburgh looked at a group of people tested when they were 11, and then again six decades later, in their 70s. The researchers found that knowing at least two languages improved verbal fluency, reading and general intelligence. Dr. Thomas Bak, from the University’s Centre for Cognitive Aging and Cognitive Epidemiology, and one of the authors of the study, explains the findings.
(Photo: Egyptian women shout slogans and hold banners during a protest against sexual harassment in Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, June 14, 2014. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil))