Professor Michael Kagan is a noted scholar of international refugee law and immigrant rights in the United States. Before coming to the Boyd School of Law in 2011, Professor Kagan spent 10 years building legal aid programs for refugees throughout the Middle East and Asia. In addition to directing the UNLV Immigration Clinic, he has consulted on hundreds of criminal cases involving non-citizens with the Clark County Public Defender.
We selected Professor Kagan as one of the City Cast 7 in 2025 because of his tireless work advocating for immigrant rights in a year when those rights are under steady and increasing attack. His research, public speaking, and role as a mentor and teacher to the next generation of immigration lawyers has created a space for clarity and hope in a time of fear and confusion.
You can find more of Professor Kagan's writing in his Substack, "Behind the Border."
Q&A WITH MICHAEL KAGAN
If you could order one meal from any Las Vegas restaurant as your last meal on Earth, what would it be and why?
I am going to answer this question on behalf of my whole family. The chile verde rancheros at The Cracked Egg. I think this was the first real meal that we had after moving here that really said "Vegas." It's Mexican and it's American, it's a diner breakfast, it's not fancy, and it never fails. It's Vegas food.
What’s a local issue you wish more people paid attention to and why?
Immigration, of course. But really I want more people in Las Vegas who like their immigrant neighbors — which is most of us — to remember that we have to work on this issue, even when it's not a crisis. The biggest long-term problem for welcoming immigrants is not that most Americans are xenophobic. It's that the xenophobic Americans care more.
If you were the ruler of Las Vegas for a day, what would be the first improvement you would make for locals?
I am available for this job, by the way.
No secret here that the biggest failing in Nevada and in Las Vegas is our schools. Poor schools have been the hardest part of living here for my family. I'm mad about it. It's a breach of the social contract in my book. And I know we're not alone in thinking that. No question about it. Fix the schools.
Where in Las Vegas do you go when you need to recharge?
I'm gonna cheat and give a food answer, because I answered the first question on behalf of my whole family. For me alone when it's been a hard day or even just a hard morning I need Vietnamese pho. It was a revelation when I was in college to learn that a soup can be an entire meal. Now it's a necessity. I'm addicted to pho now. And in almost any part of Vegas, I can get a decent bowl within a five minute drive. I think my best thoughts over pho, and it's never far away.
Why do you continue to live in Las Vegas?
Vegas is a hidden city, and I think that's the attraction for me. There's the entertainment facade. But I love the people behind the facade. And for me, I think the pinnacle is the UNLV graduations. At its best, this is a town where a hairdresser and a construction worker can still raise a family and watch their son or daughter become a lawyer. I get to be part of that. It's a family story, it's an immigrant story, a hard working story, and that's this country at its best if you ask me.
