moral circle

plural moral circles

1. The range of beings considered by an individual or culture to merit moral consideration.

   1 more example

   "[...] it’s called humanity’s expanding moral circle. The circle is the imaginary boundary we draw around those we consider worthy of moral consideration. Over the centuries, it’s expanded to include many people who were previously left out of it. As they were brought into the circle, those people won rights. Slavery was abolished. Women got the vote. Same-sex marriage was legalized."

   2019 April 4, Sigal Samuel, “Should animals, plants, and robots have the same rights as you?”, in Vox