New London — A group of protesters on Friday gathered outside a local Citizens Bank with one message: Pull your money from banks that support the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline and bank locally instead.

Citizens is one of more than 20 financial institutions that in part paved the way for the pipeline by providing credit for the $3.8 billion project, according to financial documents.

Reached by email Friday afternoon, a Citizens Bank spokeswoman provided the following statement about the protest: "We know this is a polarizing issue, but it is our policy not to discuss client banking relationships."

Made possible when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers granted permits at more than 200 water crossings — and when a federal court upheld that decision in September — the 1,200-mile pipeline will make it so oil can be transported from North Dakota to Illinois.

Right now, all that remains of the project is a section that passes near the Standing Rock Sioux tribe’s lands — on land that once belonged to them — and will include a crossing under the Missouri River.

Tribal leaders have expressed concerns that the construction of the pipeline, and any accidents that happen down the line, could threaten sacred land and artifacts as well as the primary drinking water source for the tribe and millions of others.

They and hundreds of others who believe in their cause have been protesting on-site since spring, and plan to continue to do so despite a government order to evacuate by Monday and impending harsh winter weather, according to the Associated Press.

While proponents of the pipeline have said it will decrease the country’s dependence on foreign oil, 30-year-old New London resident Jessica Williams, who organized Friday’s demonstration, said there are other ways to do that.

“At this point there are so many renewable energy resources that we could be using,” she said, adding that pipeline accidents also are problematic.

A ProPublica analysis found that, from 1986 through September 2012, pipeline accidents killed more than 500 people, injured more than 4,000 and cost almost $7 billion in property damages.

Williams noted that the city of Bismarck, N.D., through which the pipeline originally was slated to run, got the project rerouted with next to no effort.

“What it comes down to is it’s their land and they don’t want (the pipeline),” Williams said of the Standing Rock Sioux, “and they’re getting bullied into a situation that is inhumane.”

In recent months, it's been reported that law enforcement officials on scene have used things such as a grenade that mangled a woman's arm, a tear gas canister that exploded on a woman's face and water hoses that were directed at a group of demonstrators in subfreezing temperatures.

Williams said she knows of many people who are camped out in solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux, including three from New London.

"The (Standing Rock Sioux) have been bullied for 500 years," Williams said. "It's time to move on."

The Friday event at 63 Eugene O'Neill Drive, held on a day that is payday for many, was one of hundreds of recent protests across the country outlining banks’ role in the pipeline project.

Like other activists have been doing, Williams and her fellow protesters were urging residents to move their money from big banks to smaller ones like Chelsea Groton and Charter Oak. Not only do those institutions not fund projects like the Dakota Access Pipeline, Williams said, they also regularly invest in the community through various grants and scholarships.

“People are into shopping locally,” she said. “They should bank locally, too.”

The group arrived at noon, shortly after which police showed up to warn them not to interfere with the business or its customers.

The demonstrators politely said they had no plans to do that, as drivers and passengers honked their horns and gave thumbs up while driving by.

The group grew as the day went on, reaching close to 20 participants by 4:30 p.m.

Williams said Friday’s is the last protest she’ll organize for a while, as she’s embarking on a tour with her band — a four-piece folksy unit called Bears Don’t Care — in the near future. On the road, they’ll be selling anti-Dakota Access Pipeline T-shirts they had made at Spark Makerspace and will be working to raise awareness.

For today, though, Williams had one goal.

“Honestly, if I could help change one person’s opinion and get their money out of this bank and into a local one that does good things for our community, that would make me feel great,” she said.

l.boyle@theday.com