Black Muslim Psychology Conference [BMPC]
Flights
Getting to Dakar
Conference registration will cover your time at BMPC, but not the journey there. All travel is booked directly by attendees, so this guide is a starting point for flights. It is especially helpful for first-time travelers to Senegal, West Africa. For U.S.-based attendees traveling to BMPC2026, we encourage you to begin exploring flight options and booking NOW, particularly as December is a busy international travel season.
The guidance below offers helpful starting points as you prepare for your journey. Be sure to confirm current schedules, fares, and travel requirements directly with your airline.
Flights from US
Blaise Diagne International Airport (DSS) in Dakar is the primary and largest international gateway in Senegal. For travelers departing from the United States, New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) offers nonstop service to (DSS), operated by Delta Air Lines on select days. Travelers departing from other U.S. cities will generally need to connect, either through JFK or international hubs such as Paris, Brussels, Lisbon, Madrid, or Casablanca.
Quick Tips
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Book early. The JFK nonstop runs three times a week on a single aircraft into the peak December travel season—seats for BMPC dates will move fast. See more below.
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Compare. A one-stop European or Casablanca routing against a domestic connection to JFK. Depending on your city, the one-stop option is sometimes both cheaper and simpler. Remember - connecting flights are a normal part of traveling to Senegal, and depending on your departure city, an international connection may be more convenient or affordable than routing through New York. We encourage attendees to compare total travel times, fares, baggage allowances, and layover requirements before selecting a flight.
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Aim to land by December 15th or 16th. We strongly recommend arriving a day or tow earlier; allowing time to rest, settle into your accommodations, and become oriented before BMPC2026 officially begins on Thursday, December 17.
NY [JFK] - Dakar [DSS]
Delta Air Lines currently operates the only scheduled nonstop passenger service between the United States and Dakar, Senegal.
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For December 2026, Delta Flight DL216 is scheduled to operate four times weekly: Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
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The overnight flight departs JFK at approximately 7:50 PM and arrives in Dakar at approximately 8:25 AM the following morning, with a flight time of about 7 hours and 35 minutes.
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We encourage attendees to consider departing JFK on Monday, December 14, or Tuesday, December 15, arriving in Dakar on December 15 or 16, respectively. This allows time to rest, settle into accommodations, and prepare before BMPC2026 begins on Thursday, December 17.
Flight schedules, operating days, aircraft, and ticket availability are subject to change. All attendees should verify flight details directly with Delta Air Lines before booking.
Other Cities - Dakar [DSS]
Travelers departing from U.S. cities outside New York, including Chicago, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and others, should generally plan for at least one connecting flight to Dakar (DSS).
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Common routes include connecting through New York (JFK) for Delta's nonstop service or traveling through international hubs such as Paris, Brussels, Lisbon, Madrid, or Casablanca.
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Depending on your departure city, an international connection may be more convenient or affordable than traveling through JFK. We recommend comparing total travel time, airfare, baggage allowances, and layover requirements before booking.
Flight schedules, routes, and availability may change. Confirm all details directly with your airline before booking.
Need more assistance?
For attendees who would appreciate additional support, Aidah Z. Muhammad, BMPC2026 Official Travel Guide and Founder of Touchdown Experiential & Hospitality Group, is available for personalized travel consultations to help you develop a practical plan for your journey. Bring your half-made plans — flights you're weighing, questions about where to stay, what December in Dakar will actually cost you. You'll leave with a plan and written notes to book from. One (1) hour sessions run virtually through November 17. Availability is limited. Schedule a consultation through the links below.
US Based & Global North Rate
For attendees based in the United States and other Global North countries including Canada, the United Kingdom, Western and Northern European countries, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea. This rate provides personalized, one-on-one travel planning support, including guidance on flights, accommodations, local transportation, travel readiness, and preparing for your journey to Senegal. Attendees who are currently students may select the reduced rate of $75 USD. Sessions run virtually through November 17. Availability is limited. Book today!
*Consultation fees cover travel planning guidance only. Travel bookings, accommodations, transportation, and other travel expenses are not included.
$125.00 USD
Student & Global South Rate
For attendees based in Global South countries, including those in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and much of Asia, as well as students at any level of study, regardless of country of residence. This rate provides personalized, one-on-one travel planning support, including guidance on flights, accommodations, local transportation, travel readiness, and preparing for your journey to Senegal. This reduced rate is intended to reduce financial barriers for students, including doctoral candidates, and participants traveling from regions where international travel costs may represent a greater financial burden.
*Consultation fees cover travel planning guidance only. Travel bookings, accommodations, transportation, and other travel expenses are not included.
$75.00 USD
As a flagship initiative of Muslim Wellness Foundation’s Omar ibn Said Institute for Black Muslim Studies & Research, BMPC advances Black Muslim Psychology as an interdisciplinary field of inquiry, practice, and community-rooted knowledge production that centers the lived experiences, strengths, spiritual lives, racial identities, cultural traditions, and psychological well-being of people who identify as both Muslim and of Black/African descent. We seek to understand how Black Muslims make meaning, cultivate belonging, develop healthy racial and religious identities, heal from trauma, resist oppression, and build lives rooted in dignity, faith, joy, and self-determination.
Lastly, Black Muslim Psychology insists that Black Muslim life cannot be understood through suffering and deficit-based frameworks alone. We reject narratives which only ask:
"What harms Black Muslims?"
and ignore deeper, more fundamental questions such as:
"What sustains Black Muslims? What wisdom do Black Muslim communities carry? What forms of healing, leadership, and liberation emerge from Black Muslim life?”
Developed and advanced by Muslim Wellness Foundation since 2015, Black Muslim Psychology responds to a long-standing gap in psychology, counseling, public health, religious studies, and Muslim community life: the failure to adequately understand Black Muslims on their own terms.
Prepare
for the Journey
BMPC2026: Rasikh — What We Carry Forward
December 17–19, 2026
Dakar + Gorée Island, Senegal
BMPC2026 is an invitation to remember truthfully, reconnect responsibly, and reclaim futures rooted in dignity, faith, healing, and collective care. As we gather in Dakar and on Gorée Island, we do not come seeking symbolic return alone. We come to honor memory, build relationship, and deepen our shared responsibility to the past, present, and future of Black Muslim life.