Marianna Bakayau

The NAACP has filed an emergency petition against Tennessee's new maps, arguing that the state didn't have the authority to strike down a 50-year-old law that barred mid-decade redistricting.

The new congressional maps split Memphis, the state's only majority Black voting bloc, into three different districts.

Protesters from the state's blue cities argue that this will take away the voice of voters who support Democrats, roughly a third of the state's population.

Republicans say that the new maps will reflect the state's overall conservative bent and maintain that redistricting along party lines is legal.

For NPR News, I'm Marianna Bakayau in Nashville.

It's Tennessee's political, not literal, climate that has some people staying in their homes even as the overnight lows continue to dip below freezing.

Lisa Sherman Luna with the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition says many people without legal status have avoided calling 911 or taking advantage of warming shelters in the cold out of fear of being deported.

For NPR News, I'm Marianna Bakayau in Nashville.