About Upstander International

About Upstander International

Why settle for outstanding when you can be UPstanding?

Dr. Omékongo Dibinga is the UPstander. His life’s mission is to inspire all across the globe to take a stand when they witness an injustice, no matter how small or large. A John Maxwell Team “Top 30 speaker”, he is an international speaker, trilingual poet, TV talk show host, rapper, and professor of Inter-cultural Communication at American University, where he also serves as a faculty affiliate to the Antiracist Research & Policy Center. His Urban Music Awardwinning work has best been described by Nikki Giovanni as “outstanding, exciting, and new while being very old.” His book, From the Limbs of My Poetree was described by Essence Magazine as “a remarkable and insightful collection of exquisite poetry that touches sacred places within your spirit.” He was one of 5 international recipients out of 750,000 to win the first ever “CNN iReport Spirit Award.” He has received over 1,000,000 views on CNN.com.
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About UPstander International (UI)

UI provides leadership and diversity presentations and training to corporations, non-profit organizations, educational institutions, and government groups. To further enhance its mission, UI produces books and other multimedia products geared towards motivating organizations and individuals to reach their full potential.  Books already published include a motivational book, a poetry book, 2 books of children’s poetry, a life skills training book for youth, and a youth employment guide. book. In addition to publishing books, 7 CDs, and one DVD have been produced to date.

Company History

UI was officially established in May, 2004, under the name Free Your Mind Publishing (FYMP).  The company is the result of years of motivational talks and presentations by Omekongo that led to the publishing of multiple multimedia products, which emerged from the overwhelming demand for Omekongo’s award-winning work.  It is for this reason that the company was launched. The content of these products led to an increased demand for presentations and trainings which caused FYMP to change its name to in 2011 to Upstander International to serve as an umbrella for the multiple services provided.

To date, UI has published over 85 authors through 7 books, 7 CDs, and 1 DVD. UI products are now available for purchase by Barnes & Noble, Borders, Amazon, Apple, and other companies where books and music are sold online or in-store. Income revenues have steadily increased, with 2021 being the strongest year for revenue.